


Smoke Signals

by trixlop, WerewulfTherewulf



Category: The Hobbit (Jackson Movies), The Hobbit - All Media Types
Genre: Alcoholic!Fili, Depressed!Fili, Fili has PTSD, Fireman!Fili, Kili has anger issues, Ladybugs, M/M, Mentioned minor character deaths, Modern AU, Mute!Kili, Ultimate future Fili angst, accidental recreational drug use, mentions of past violence, the boys are completely unrelated
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-13
Updated: 2015-04-11
Packaged: 2018-03-12 06:51:16
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 23,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3347624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/trixlop/pseuds/trixlop, https://archiveofourown.org/users/WerewulfTherewulf/pseuds/WerewulfTherewulf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For months, Kili had been unsure about how to contact the new mysterious neighbor living beneath him. If he had known that all it would take to summon the cute blond was setting his own place on fire, he would have done it on day one! The stressful, life-changing events following that day though... yeah, he's worth it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [kopperblaze](https://archiveofourown.org/users/kopperblaze/gifts), [trixlop](https://archiveofourown.org/users/trixlop/gifts).



The smell of heavy smoke woke him up, and not thinking much about it, Kili let himself take a few moments to open his eyes and sit up. He threw an arm over the back of the couch where he had been laid out napping and yawned widely, nearly falling back down. When his eyes began to sting, he startled fiercely and scrambled off the sofa, trying to quickly find his bearings. The air was filled with thick, black smoke. His apartment was on fire! He fell to his hands and knees to get beneath the opaque layer of pollution. Practically hacking up a lung, Kili threw his hands up on the coffee table, blindly searching for his phone.

He knocked over a glass of water in the process, but he found it finally, and swept it to the ground, jumping forward and landing on his stomach to grab it. He checked the time, 3:15. Kili nearly sobbed with relief, it couldn’t have been a more perfect time. Pushing back onto his hands and knees, Kili crawled over to the arcadia door that led to the balcony. He managed to yank it open and fly out to the far railing, pulling himself to his feet.

 _Yes_ , he was there. _Of course he was_. His cute, blond, downstairs neighbor was standing a bit away on the ground floor, holding the leash to his dog and watching as it sniffed the ground and searched for a place to do its business. His cute, blond, downstairs neighbor-- the _fireman_ , was standing with his usual can of beer in his free hand and in the same pair of sandals, the same pair of beige cargo shorts, just as he did every day a quarter to eight and a quarter after three.

First, Kili frantically waved his arms in the air, in the hopes that Neighbor-boy would turn around and see him and the smoke billowing out of his doorway. No such luck. He began pounding on the metal railing, smiling at the volume of the resulting sounds. Kili watched Neighbor-boy lift his head and turn it _just slightly_ , but not enough to see Kili. He had earphones in. Kili clutched his chest in misery. He _never_ had earphones in, those were definitely new. Of all days!! Desperate, Kili reached down to try and yank his left shoe off.

With a quick tug, he felt his ankle nearly come out of place and he winced. He loosed the laces and untied them just enough to where he could finally pull the shoe off. Pulling his arm far back behind him, Kili took quick aim then launched it through through the air. He let out a loud guffaw when it hit its mark, almost too well. Smack to the back of Neighbor-boy’s head, and Kili watched him double over in shock and flip around, holding the back of his head.

When their eyes met, Kili began waving his arms madly again. Neighbor’s eyes widened and the color drained out of his face. He pulled at his dog’s leash as he began running towards his and Kili’s shared apartment building. Not waiting to see him again, Kili leaped back into his apartment and crawled to his front door, unlocking it just in time for it to swing wide open and whack him firmly in the forehead.

_“Fuck, shit! Shit, sorry!”_

Kili was holding himself up on his elbows, cradling his bruising head. He didn’t have much time to register the time between him on the ground and him suddenly being carried like a sack of potatoes over Cutie’s shoulder. The jerking of being ran down the stairs left him out of breath, and when he was tossed onto a plush couch he just lay there, mind reeling. Cutie continued into another room and came back a few seconds later with a fire extinguisher in his hands. His chest filled Kili’s vision as he hurried over to him.

“Don’t move, I’ll take care of everything,” he told Kili, pushing him back into laying down when he tried to sit up.

‘No, don’t go, I just got you,’ Kili thought, reaching out for Cutie as he left back through the front door. With a groan, Kili rolled onto his side and coughed long and hard. His smoke intake had left him dizzy and out of breath, so he just lay there with his eyes closed for a moment, reveling in the fresh oxygen. The _tappety tappety tappety tappety_ of claws on the hardwood floor reminded him of his neighbor’s dog, and sure enough when he opened his eyes the Dalmatian was standing right in front of his face, tail wagging wildly.

‘Hey boy,’ Kili thought, smiling and reaching out to pet him. He grabbed the little tag dangling from the red collar around the dog’s neck to see his name; Spot. Kili snorted. A blond-haired blue-eyed firefighter with a Dalmatian named Spot? It was right out of the story books he read to his students.  Spot barked twice, his tail whipping through the air fast enough to be a rotor-blade, and walked away to go eat if the new crunching sounds were anything to go by. Kili swung himself to his feet and began looking around, but not before being thrown off by the lack of one of his shoes. He sat back down for a second and pulled it off, placing it underneath the coffee table to keep it out of the way.

The first thing that caught Kili’s attention when he began scanning the apartment were the framed pictures littering the walls and side tables. He walked over to look at the ones on the wall next to the kitchen. They were all of Cutie and who Kili assumed was his father? An older man with long, black hair peppered with a bit of grey, and a matching beard. The top photo showed a teenager Cutie holding a small Dalmatian puppy-- Spot. Cutie was grinning from ear to ear as Spot, being held in his new owner’s arms, licked the side of his face.

The one beneath it was Cutie and his father, with Cutie in his fireman’s outfit and his dad hugging him close. They were both grinning brightly, and the dimples in Cutie’s cheeks seemed impossibly deeper. Finally, the last picture was of him shirtless at the beach with Spot. Kili blushed and had to turn away.

After being overtaken by another fit of coughs, Kili walked into the kitchen and grabbed one of the glasses hanging from little hooks underneath a cupboard and helped himself to some water from the sink. He heard pounding footsteps from outside coming in quick succession, and looked to the front door as Cutie burst in, panting. Covered from head to toe in soot, it was clear the white t-shirt he was wearing was ruined. His sight landed directly on Kili.

“Are you alright?” he asked between breaths.

‘Are you?’ Kili wanted to ask, but he just nodded. He watched as his savior shuffled into the kitchen along with him, and open the fridge to grab a bottle of beer. He proceeded to move to stand opposite Kili, on the other side of the counter, as he opened his drink.

Kili stared at him in awe as Cutie gulped down the entire bottle in one go, placing it down next to the previously abandoned can that Kili had seen him with not twenty minutes prior. The neighbor dragged a hand down his face and let out a hollow laugh before looking back at Kili.

“You put a hot pocket in the microwave for twenty minutes, did you know that? Not to mention you don’t have a working smoke detector. I know they can be annoying, but those things are life-savers, you’ve got to keep them running. Please be more careful in the future.” he grabbed the empty bottle and walked back into the kitchen, opening the cupboard under the sink to toss it into the the designated bin. Kili didn’t miss the distinct sound of glass hitting even more glass.

Cutie started back out, and tugged Kili’s sleeve on the way.

“Here come sit with me man, grab a drink if you want,” he told him, kicking off his sandals in no particular direction and going to drop onto his couch. Grabbing his water, Kili followed, plopping down next to his host and placing his socked feet onto the coffee table.

The television was turned on, and Kili sat there mildly uncomfortable as they sat there watching pointless commercials.

“My name is Fili, by the way. Who’re you?”

The question startled Kili, and he looked over to see the blond staring at him and smiling gently. He quickly looked around for some kind of paper to write on, but all he could find was a pen. He wrote his name on his hand and showed it to Fili. Fili snorted and his smile widened.

“Funny coincidence,” he said, taking a gulp from his drink. “Why did you hit me with your shoe? Why not call emergency instead, that would have been a much better option, they’re better equipped than me,” he asked, tilting his head to the side. It reminded Kili of a curious dog.

He grimaced and shook his head, unconsciously reaching for his throat where a thick scar wrapped around it, marring the otherwise perfect skin. Luckily, Fili seemed able to piece two and two together rather well. It bugged Kili when people didn’t get it and kept pestering him until he could find a pen and paper.

“Ah I see, so that’s why the cute brunet upstairs hasn't been too chatty,” Fili mused, laughing. Catching himself, his face turned red. “Shit, s-sorry! That was really forward of me, I don’t really-- ugh, sorry man,” he babbled, hiding his face in this hands. Kili just shook his head again and shrugged, trying and failing to hide his grin.

“So uh… I don’t really think you’ll be able to stay in your apartment for a while… sorry man, the smoke damage in there is pretty advanced. You’ll be able to go back eventually, but not any time this week I wouldn't think. I could call some people up for you, if you want, to clean stuff up and repair it. I do it all the time, it’s practically part of the job, you know?”

Fili’s nervousness dissolved when he saw Kili’s hopeful and excited expression. He grinned, but was distracted briefly as Spot appeared and jumped up onto his lap, getting comfy. He laughed and stroked behind his ears.

“Yeah, it’s no problem, really! Yeah, and uh… if you want I wouldn't mind if you crash on my couch in the meantime. I’m just downstairs so you wouldn't have to go far…”

Kili stared at him, his own face growing increasingly red. Scrambling for the pen, he hastily wrote ‘Don’t want 2 b bother’ and showed it to Fili.

Fili shook his head, “Not at all, really it will be great,” he grinned.

‘R u sure?’ Kili wrote. Fili nodded.

“Completely. It’ll be a nice change of pace, and I’m sure Spot would love the company. I’m pretty boring on my own, honestly,” he finished, picking his can back up from the coffee table and drinking the rest of the contents down. He crushed the can and tossed it to the table again as Kili wrote another message on his hand.

‘OK’ it said, ‘will go grab things, brb’

He reached for his single shoe then, and stood up with Fili, who saw him out.

“Alright, I’ll shove a pizza in the oven then, that sound alright?” Fili asked him. Kili turned to look at him over his shoulder and smiled, nodding. “Alright, great, see you in a few then yeah?” Fili waved him off.

When the door closed, Fili fell against the wall and slid to the ground. Spot loped over to him and began licking his face, leading Fili to grab his neck and hide his face.

“Spo-t,” he moaned, “What the hell have I done? I can’t believe I did that! How embarrassing…” he let go of Spot and flopped onto his back. Spot took advantage of this and stepped onto Fili’s stomach with his front legs, standing and panting happily.

“Spot I can’t breath buddy,” Fili laughed, trying to shove him off, but he wouldn’t budge.

 


	2. Chapter 2

For the second time in a week, it was the smell of smoke that woke Kili up. Again, he didn't think much about it, and let himself begin to drift back asleep. But then he remembered the events that took place a couple of days ago. His heart plummeted to his stomach and he tried to scramble up from the couch and to his feet, but he got tangled in the blanket and slammed to the ground. Giving up on unwrapping himself, he began to slug crawl across the room.

“You uh… you okay, man?”

Kili froze. His eyes slowly dragged up to reach Fili’s face, then the smoke coming from his stove. He let out a huff of relief before letting his head smack the ground, smiling. He began to sign back an affirmation and explanation before he remembered the Fili couldn’t understand sign language.

He slowly got himself out of his blanket nest he had gotten himself wrangled in and placed it folded nice and neat on the back of the couch. His nose scrunched up in amusement when he saw Fili frantically try to scrape whatever was burning out of his pan. He approached the other man and put a hand on his shoulder. The reaction was unexpected. Fili nearly jumped out of his clothes, and he did fling the plastic spatula at Kili in his shock.

Kili’s reflexes kicked in and he reached up and snatched the implement right out of the air. Fili put a hand on his stomach and laughed.

“Good catch! Sorry about that though, you scared the shit out of me,” he explained. Still chuckling, he turned and grabbed the pan, pulling out the trash and scraping several charred contents into it. “I uh… I tried to make us some breakfast,” he explained, rubbing the back of his head as his face turned bright red.

Kili snorted and rolled his eyes, then sauntered over and hip-bumped him out of the way. He signed at Fili to leave and sit down or something as he went to the sink and started cleaning the pan out.

“That means to go away right? That’s what it looks like, so I’ll just go get dressed. Maybe you could teach me some sign language later in the day if you want?” Fili nervously laughed, reaching into the fridge to grab a beer and walking out of the room. Kili smiled gently, rolling his eyes. He’d like that. Having someone actually want to take the time to learn what he’s saying made his chest fill with warmth. Not even his family cared enough about him to do that for him.

Kili decided to do something nice in return for his host, he already really owed him anyway for saving his life and letting him stay here. He turned and tried to flag Fili down before he turned the corner, but he was already gone. Kili put the pan in the sink and hustled after Fili. Reaching his bedroom door, he knocked.

“Yeah? C’mon in man, I’m pretty decent,” Fili called out. Kili let himself in and immediately choked on air. Fili’s arms were above his head as he struggled to pull on his shirt, leaving Kili to stare at his well-toned chest. The golden curls that took up his pectorals looked so soft and fluffy, and the trail that tapered off down into his pants… Kili’s faced rivaled the strawberries growing on his balcony-- dread filled his stomach. His garden! There was no way it could have survived the hot pocket fire. He almost wanted to cry at the loss. Fili’s voice pulled him out of his thoughts.

“Hey, so… I kind of need help,” he said, and Kili could tell he was blushing in embarrassment. It seemed that that was all the pair of them had been doing since Kili’s accident. Fili was still trapped in his shirt, and it appeared his biceps were too big to fit through the sleeves. Kili couldn’t help it; he began laughing.

The odd wheezing sounds caught Fili’s attention, and he bent over almost double to be able to see out the top of his shirt.

“Are you laughing at me? How rude!” he demanded, but he was laughing along with his companion. There was something about Kili’s face pinched up in pure joy that made Fili’s stomach turn in excitement. He began to feel true, real emotions, something he hadn’t truly felt in years. Trying to walk backwards to sit on his bed, he tripped right over Spot and he fell like a ton of bricks to the ground.

Kili’s eyes squeezed impossibly tighter as his grin grew impossibly wider. He fell to the ground also, sobbing in his hysterics. Fili groaned and rolled to the side, finally shimmying the shirt off of his biceps and throwing it across the room where it hit the wall and fell to the ground.

“My sides…” he groaned, wrapping his arms around himself. It took another few moments for Kili to calm down, and when he finally did he found Fili staring at him, a cheeky smile plastered across his face. They lay there and watched each other, just merely existing, before Fili at last sat up and laid back on his arms.

“Is that what you look like when you laugh? I didn’t know it was possible for you to be any cuter!” he dared, using the excuse of standing up to hide his face. He went over and helped a red-faced Kili get back on his feet. “Guess wearing that shirt is out from now on, eh? It might fit you better, if you want it.  So what was it you needed?” he bit at his lip after he finished, and Kili wanted nothing more than to be the one biting it instead.

His eyes trailed slowly back up Fili’s chest again before meeting Fili’s eyes, and his smirk. He walked over and grabbed one of Fili’s strong arms and led him back to the kitchen. He began rummaging through one of the drawers until he found a pad of paper and a pencil, and began writing a long message. Fili waited patiently, which Kili was grateful for.

Finished, he ripped the paper from the notebook and handed it proudly to Fili. Almost instantly Fili snorted.

“Your handwriting sucks!” he giggled. The sound he made didn’t deter Kili from being riled up. Fili laughed harder. “I kid, I kid, it’s fine,” he told Kili, going back to reading the note.

‘You’re a shitty cook,’

“Oh gee,”

‘so I’m going to do the cooking. But you don’t have anything healthy to eat, so I’m sending you out to do the shopping while I clean up your mess. Here’s a list of things that you will be getting:

  * Mixed leafy greens

  * Non-expired eggs

  * Organic butter

  * Red bell peppers

  * Mushrooms




make sure everything’s organic’

Fili looked back to Kili and nodded.

“Ok, yeah, sure, I can do that. I’ll leave right now! Or… after I get a shirt on,” a sheepish smile appeared on his face, and he walked around Kili to open the fridge to grab a beer. The second he pulled it out Kili’s hand was on his wrist and he was shaking his head. “What? No, I’m fine to drive,” Fili told him, prying Kili off of him.

Kili shook his head again and stepped in Fili’s way, whipping his hand back to yank the drink out of Fili’s hand and placing it behind him on the counter. He searched around for his pad of paper with his hand, and began to scrawl something down as fast as he could.

‘Not if ur driving, u’ve had enuff,’

Fili’s lips pursed and he forcefully shoved past Kili, ignoring him as he tried to stop him again and heading back into his room. When he reappeared not long after he was in a red shirt and another pair of cargo shorts. He didn’t acknowledge Kili as he grabbed his car keys and left.

Kili sighed angrily and tugged open the fridge. There were only a few cans of beer left in there, and one bottle. When they had gone to sleep last night, there was a total of eight drinks. It was only nine in the morning. Kili wanted to roll his eyes. Of course. Great shape, great career, great personality? He should have known, it was all too good to be true.

He felt something cold and wet touch his hand, and Kili found Spot standing there whining for attention. Kili smiled sadly as he began to scratch him.

‘Hey boy. Sorry you have to put up with this behavior, it must suck,’ he thought. Shaking his head, he pushed off the counter and went back over to the sink to begin washing the dirtied dishes Fili left behind.

Fili arrived back home some time after Kili finished and had had time to find Spot’s food and feed him. Fili walked in the door and snorted when he saw his dog laying on his stomach with his legs splayed everywhere to eat.

“Spot you lazy chode,” he chuckled. He placed the big paper bag full of groceries on the counter next to Kili. “So I ended up having to go down to the Hobbit Hole to get most of the stuff because the local on the corner didn’t have it, not a problem though,” he explained. Kili didn’t miss him swing the twenty-four pack into the fridge as he went to pull the things out of the bag, but Fili seemed to be in a much better attitude than when he left so he let it slide this time.

Kili was pleasantly surprised to find more than he has asked for, and turned around holding the cucumbers and onions with a genuine smile stretching across his face. Fili looked up from the fridge and smiled with him.

“Yeah, I thought you might want some other stuff there too so I just went crazy. There should be radishes and carrots, and red potatoes and celery… red cabbage,” he stood back up and closed the fridge door, taking the now empty paper bag and folding it up, putting it in his tiny recycling bin. “Now let me guess, you’re going to kick me out of my own kitchen so you can cook something, right?”

Kili’s nose scrunched up in amusement and he nodded, putting a hand on Fili’s back and shoving lightly. Fili complied, grabbing the beer that had been left on the counter as he exited. While Kili cooked up a mean cheese and potato omelette, Fili took the time to take Spot for a walk and clean up a little bit around the apartment.

Kili walked up and nudged him, holding his plate of eggs and ketchup in one hand, his pad of paper and pen in the other. Fili put his broom down and went to grab his own plate, joining Kili on the couch to watch raunchy soaps.

“I have the late shift at work tonight,” Fili turned and told Kili through a mouthful of egg. Kili scrunched up his nose in disgust and reached over to put his hand on Fili’s mouth, shaking his head. Fili laughed and swallowed his bite, then topped it off with a swig of his beer. “Sorry, sorry,” he chuckled.

“I’ve got work tonight though, so I’m leaving at nine tonight, and I’ll be back around… I don’t know, ten tomorrow morning? It depends. Just make yourself at home while I’m gone. If anything, Spot will show you the ropes,”

Kili laughed through his nose and nodded. He leaned forward and grabbed his paper, scratching down a message.

‘I’ve got work tomorrow too,’ it read, ‘I work weekends in the early afternoon, from noon to about three. I teach deaf and mute children sign language,’

Fili looked up at him, awed. “Really? That’s so cool! That’s really great that you do that, honestly,” he said. Kili turned away, suddenly shy. Fili laughed, “Aw, I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I just think it’s so incredible that you-- you’re an incredible person! You’re all healthy, you have your own garden, you recycle, and you’re just so damn handsome! … You have your life so put together man! It’s awesome, you're awesome,”

When Fili finished, he was looking away flustered, and Kili was just as muddled as he shakily wrote down another note. He held it out to Fili, hiding a portion of it.

‘Had a garden. It’s crisped,’

Fili smiled sadly at him. “Oh, yeah… I’m sorry that that happened,” he told Kili, wringing his sweaty hands together, nervous for reasons unknown to him. Then he read the rest of the page when Kili removed his hand.

‘Do you like me?

-yes

-no

-ew you look like a chud’

He couldn’t help but laugh, and took the paper, circling his answer and handing it back to Kili.

“Careful not to let the teacher see us passing notes, she might read it out loud to the whole class,” he said, and Kili stuck out his tongue. Fili looked away, trying to cool his inflamed cheeks by placing his chilled hands on them. “Yeah I haven’t been really conspicuous about my… little crush… have I,” he mumbled. He chanced a glimpse back over and saw the paper laying in the big spot between them.

He picked it up and only had to glance at it to see what it said.

‘U R cute 2’

Fili let out a single sharp laugh and ran a hand through his short hair. “So that’s what you think, eh? Even wrote it like a thirteen year old girl, you must really have a schoolgirl crush on me,” he giggled. Kili smirked and nodded, then made cheesy kissy faces at him. “Don’t tempt me, hippie,” Fili mildly threatened, taking a bit of red bell pepper from the remnants of his omelette and flicking it at Kili. It bounced off his forehead and hit the ground, where Spot magically appeared and was more than happy to clean it up for them.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 17 kudos and 2 bookmarks for one chapter? Oh you guys~  
> Please comment (!!!) and leave me kudos if you'd like! ♥


	3. Chapter 3

On the fourth day, they had sex. Fili was completely unprepared by the suddenness of it, but he found that this was one of the more pleasant surprises in his life. Kili had just come back in from running a few errands for work, and apparently, if the look on his face was anything to go by, it did not go well. At all.

His face was red, and it was the first time Fili had seen it that way for any other reason than embarrassment. He was shaking, too, from his rage, and his hair was disheveled, his hands were fisted, and he wasn’t even taking proper footsteps. Fili would be lying if he were to say he wasn’t at least a little intimidated by it all, and afraid that maybe Kili’s stomping would put holes in his floor. He didn’t want to take the risk suggesting that Kili might be a bit more careful so that he’d get his deposit back.

Not daring to move when Kili disappeared from his sight, Fili figured the more still he sat in his spot on the couch, the less likely it’d be for Kili to spot and throttle him. Ultimately, Fili had to throw all caution to the wind when in replacement of the stomping began an astonishingly loud slamming noise. He shot to his feet and sprinted for the kitchen. There, Kili was aggressively kicking at one of the floor cupboards. Fili arrived just in time to see him manage to break it in.

“Hey! Kili, Hey! KILI!!” he shouted, trying and failing to get his attention. Kili kept at it, punching the countertop repeatedly. After other aborted attempts to stop him, Fili decided that enough was enough and it was time to take physical action. Just as Kili began trying to rip the countertop up and off its foundation, Fili took three large steps over to Kili and shoved him.

Caught by surprise, Kili stumbled over his feet and ended up slamming to the ground. He didn't bother to get up, instead punching the cabinet he was next to just once. He opened his mouth wide and it was clear to Fili that he was trying to shout and yell, but all that came out was a hoarse grunt. This seemed to only make things worse. Kili's head fell back against the wall with a light _thunk_ and for a brief moment Fili thought he'd finally calmed down. That was, until Kili started up again, pounding the ground with a fist.

"Kili, hey. Kili that's enough, come on."

Fili walked over to him and grabbed his hand mid-air and used it to try and pick him up. Surprisingly, Kili cooperated. They stood there awkwardly, Kili's heavy breathing filling the silence. Adrenaline coursing through his veins, Fili ran a hand over his face. In the midst of it, he felt a strong hand on his chest, and then he was being steered back into a wall.

He let out a small 'oof' as he made impact, but he never gave the minute amount of pain a thought. He couldn't, not with Kili's mouth on his, _ravishing_ him. Things progressed alarmingly fast. Hands down pants, shirts flung across the room, the discovery of Fili’s nipple piercings, shoes and socks disappearing behind furniture. It was all an exciting blur. Next both were on the kitchen ground, Kili on his hands and knees before Fili. Their lube substitute, a convenient bottle of extra virgin olive oil, ended up falling back off the counter and spilling all over the place, some of it reaching Kili and causing him to slip and fall to his stomach. Fili yanked him back up by his hips.

His pace was fast and rough, evoking the most incredible sounds from Kili. Fili knew that these grunts and moans Kili made were the closest he’d get to hearing what he had of his voice, and Fili loved it.

They laid side by side while basking in the afterglow, not caring about the olive oil at their backs and the coldness of the kitchen tile. He turned to watch Kili, the slow rise and fall of his chest and the lax muscles in his face. Kili noticed the eyes on him and turned his head to return the gaze.

“Feeling better?” Fili asked, eyebrows raisings slightly. A smile ghosted Kili’s face, and he nodded, then turned to look back at the ceiling. “Want to tell me about it?”

Kili shrugged slightly and nodded, throwing his arm up in the air and pretending to write.  
  
“Yeah, yeah, alright, hold on,” Fili told him. He sat up with a small grunt, got to his feet and sauntered over to the pen drawer, putting in extra effort to swing his hips the entire short distance. He heard Kili snort. Fili grabbed a permanent marker from the drawer and tossed it to Kili, but despite his best efforts to catch it, Kili missed and it landed on his chest with a tiny smack. Fili walked back over and lay back down next to him. “Couldn’t find any paper, so you can just use my stomach if you want,”

Kili didn’t need to be told twice. He grabbed the marker and uncapped it as he sat up, and went to town. Fili had to hide his face in his hands to keep from giggling too hard; it tickled monstrously, and seemed to take forever until Kili finally stopped. Fili peeked over his fingers, and let out a short yelp.

“Kili! You made me endure all that! I like them, but--! It tickled! You’re awful!” he whined, tracing over the rudimentary tentacles drawn all over his chest and abs with his finger. Kili merely grinned broadly at him. “C’mon, tell me why you were upset. I want to make it better,”

Kili grimaced, but relented. He pulled his legs up to his chest and rested his free arm on one knee, writing his script methodically onto the free spots of Fili's chest.

'Stuck behind fucking old people in traffic.'

Fili read it, and chuckled.

"That's it? That's why you were so pissed? You kicked a hole in my cupboard because some old cooters slowed you down a bit?"

Kili's glare was unforgiving.

'I **hate** old people.'

“Okay, okay,” Fili laughed.

They lapsed into silence for about a minute before Fili turned to look back at Kili, any trace of earlier amusement gone.

“Hey, can I ask you something kind of personal? You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to,” he inquired, studying Kili for his response. Kili nodded and readied his marker. “What’s that scar? On your neck. It has to do with your voice, doesn’t it,”

Kili didn’t make any moves to give an explanation, and Fili worried he overstepped his boundaries. He began sitting up to join Kili.

“You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want--” he was interrupted by Kili’s mouth, and felt him straddle his lap. Any thoughts bouncing around Fili’s skull flew right out his ears as Kili rolled his hips _just so_ , and--

 

 

Two days later, the boys got a notification from the front office that Kili’s apartment was ready to vacate once again. They were both excited, if not a little morose. The past six days had seemed like a wonderful vacation to Fili, ignoring the little bumps in the road. He declared that as a celebration for the occasion, they have a steak dinner that night. And if it wasn’t just Kili’s luck that Fili happened to have _the_ most divine steaks in his freezer waiting to thaw, and the best spices and marinade to boot. Plus some fine wine, chocolate lava cake and a few tacky B horror movies, all this and more would be waiting for them when Fili got home from saving the day.

Kili saw the man off to work in his damnably attractive work pants, suspenders pulled up over his shoulders and his well-fitted black shirt. His coat was over the same shoulder that was carrying a small cooler, and his helmet was underneath the opposite arm. He set down the cooler and coat on the ground for a moment so he could give Kili a firm goodbye hug, the other man forcing a smile on his face before pulling him off and shoving him out the door.

Waiting until Fili was well out of sight, Kili started skittering around the apartment, collecting the few handful of items he had brought with him while he stayed. Spot followed him around the entire time, nipping at his heels. When Kili had gotten his things put nice and neat in a pile by the door, he grabbed Spot’s leash and hooked him up. Once Spot realized what he was doing, he started jumping and spinning in circles and being a wild nuisance, making it almost impossible for Kili to get it on.

They did a quick walk around the complex, Spot stopping to smell the flowers every few minutes, his tail similar to a helicopter rotor. A pair of ladies walked by at one point and cooed at Spot whilst simultaneously undressing Kili with their eyes. They burst into a mad fit of giggles when they finally left, whispering loudly about how cute the guy and his dog were and the things they’d do to him.

Kili just rolled his eyes and brought Spot back home. As they neared the front door, Kili slowed down. He did need to pick up his check… and the food in his home probably wouldn’t be too good anymore. He looked down at Spot, who was already staring at him. His tail began back up with full force gale winds.

How’s that sound, buddy? Want to go shopping with me? Kili thought. As if reading his mind, Spot barked once and ran a circle around Kili. Alright, that’s what I thought.

Kili led Spot over to the nearby light post and tied the leash to it before heading inside. As he grabbed a bottle of water and a backpack, he heard Spot begin to bark loudly. Not thinking much of it, he carried on, picking his pace up slightly. As he scribbled down a simple shopping list, Spot’s barking got more incessant, rose in volume for just a beat, then grew quieter and quieter. Kili’s stomach dropped.

He scrambled out the door just in time to see Spot round a corner. Gulping, Kili immediately started his chase. Just turning the first corner revealed what Spot was after; a squirrel. Kili wanted to kick himself for not tying the leash to the pole tight enough. He didn’t want to know what Fili would do to him if he were to lose his best friend.

For twenty minutes Kili sprinted behind the Dalmatian, always just one step behind him. When Spot finally slowed down, allowing Kili to catch up and grab his leash, it was in front of an easily identifiable building-- the fire station. Kili wasn’t sure whether or not to be surprised or amused that the dog knew the way here, but he figured that while they were there, they might as well go and visit Fili.

He walked in, nearly bumping into someone right away.

“Well hello there! Can I help you with somethin’?” the man asked. Kili realized he didn’t have any way to communicate with the man, having neglected to bring his notebook and pencil. Luckily, Spot’s mere presence solved the issue. “Oh, hey Spot! What’re you-- Ohh, you must be Kili,” his grin was wily. “Fili’s talked all ‘bout you.

“I’m Bofur Fadbek. If it’s Fili you’re looking for, I’m afraid he’s not here at the moment. He’s out on a job right now, but if you want to wait around a bit, I’m sure he and his crew will be back soon!”

Kili gave him an apologetic smile and shook his head. He pulled out his shopping list and showed it to Bofur, who responded with understanding.

“Ah I see. Well if you want, I could take Spot off your hands! He knows all of us here well, and I’m sure Fili would love to see him right after a job,”

Kili thought about it for a few seconds, but relented. It would be a lot easier to get things done and back home without having to watch a dog the whole time. Saying goodbye, Kili pet an excited Spot one last time before leaving.

That evening, he was in Fili’s kitchen sauteing asparagus and mushrooms. He had walked down to the grocery store after departing with Spot, and had taken the bus back. He was expecting Fili to be back at any time, and figured he’d go ahead and start things up in the meantime.

Sure enough, just as he finished mashing some potatoes, he heard keys trying to find the lock at the front door and the jingling of Spot’s tags. Fili walked in after being shoved aside by Spot and called out a greeting. He threw his coat over onto the couch and hung his helmet on a peg of the coat rack before sauntering into the kitchen. His cooler was placed on a free spot on the counter across from the fridge.

Holding the fridge door open with his foot, Fili methodically loaded it up with the case of beer had had in the cooler, striking up a conversation with Kili.

“Have a nice day? It was a nice surprise to hear you stopped by, and you even left me a gift! A loud, smelly, obnoxious gift, but I loved him all the same,” he chuckled. Finished restocking the refrigerator, he shuffled over to Kili, leaving no space between them. He rested his head against Kili’s shoulder. The distinct smell of smoke and sweat filled Kili’s nostrils, and he found himself enjoying the scent. Fili’s scent.

“It really was lovely, even if it was a bit unintentional,” Fili continued to mumble. “Had a lot of calls today, but the one I was on when you came around… ah, nevermind. What kind of talk is this? Bringing home work is the worst.”

Kili just nodded, not completely focused. Other than the food he was cooking, his thoughts were on how affectionate Fili was being; how much he was just in general. It made him uncomfortable.

“I’ll go ahead and start up the grill. Shouldn’t take too long to nuke these suckers,”

That got Kili’s attention. Alarmed, he turned to see Fili grabbing the thawed and marinated steaks out of the fridge. He glanced at Kili and laughed at his reaction.

“Hey, no worries. I do this all the time. I promise I’m a lot better at this than I am at frying eggs,” he tried to reassure Kili, rubbing one of his shoulders. Kili shrugged out of it.

Still wary, he made sure to stand mere inches behind Fili as he stood at the grill on the tiny patio. Every time Fili took a swig of his current drink, Kili would become even more aggressive, trying to take the grilling tools out of his hands. Fili seemed to be telling the truth though, because he plated the steaks at just the right time, no signs of burning anywhere.

They sat down with their meals at the sofa, popping in an old recorded VHS tape. Kili took his first bite and was immediately unsurprised to discover that Fili had left the steaks to marinade in beer for the entire day. Halfway through their movie, Fili stood and took their plates to the kitchen and returned with flute glasses with champagne in them, as he had promised. Minutes later, the microwave beeped and he got up again. He didn’t reappear until after another few moment, this time with two small chocolate lava cakes on tea plates. Kili snorted and smiled, not waiting for Fili to place it on the table and reaching up for it as he passed by. He dug right in, letting out a near orgasmic moan at the very first bite.

“Oh yeah?” Fili laughed, sampling some of his own. “That good, eh? Well, now I know what to supply you with,”

Kili nodded enthusiastically, and Fili could tell he was struggling to not eat it all in three bites. He placed his own plate onto the coffee table, and replaced it with his glass of champagne. After gulping it down quickly, he lay back down, his head on the couch arm, his feet on Kili’s legs.

“Bit too rich for me, I’m afraid,” he mumbled. His eyes were closed now, and his arms crossed tightly. He was well on his way to drifting off. Before he could, Kili ousted him. “No…” he groaned, sliding off the couch to the floor before he stood. Kili led him to his room and dumped him on his bed, patting him on the head as he tossed the blanket over him.

He returned to the living room and turned off the television and movie. He turned to clean up their leftover dishes, but his eyes targeted in on Fili’s near untouched lava cake. In half a heartbeat he was sitting tenderly on the edge of the couch, devouring it. Afterwards he did clean up. In the kitchen, he stared at his own untouched glass of champagne. He considered drinking it, but just reimagining Fili drinking throughout the day had him dumping it down the sink.

He went to check in on the man and found in his place a lightly snoring log, curled up and mostly hidden beneath his blanket and pillows. Kili couldn’t help but think about how cute he looked, and how relaxed he seemed. Shaking his head, he turned back to the hall and went to hunt down his shoes. As he opened the front door, he heard Spot shift and stand, his toenails tapping the ground as he joined Kili’s side, tail wagging sleepily. Kili scratched his ears, then slipped out the door, closing it quietly behind him.

* * *

 

**A/N:**   


Ha ha look nadadel found  [Fili at the beach](https://gs1.wac.edgecastcdn.net/8019B6/data.tumblr.com/b21497f19b8620d0b6b9dc295a28f5e1/tumblr_njrpcy7KQR1tgzq12o1_1280.jpg)

 

Enjoy the fluff and happiness you're all getting NOW because it won't last forever!

 


	4. Chapter 4

Fili sighed contentedly as he woke up, tiny rays of sunlight managing to peek in at him underneath his pillow. He yanked it off and tossed it to the other side of the bed, pushed himself up on his arms and stretched. He rolled onto his back before getting out of bed, stretching his toes and stomach as he reached high into the sky.  
Realization dawned on Fili as he remembered the previous evening, and as he rotated his torso from side to side for a second he glanced over his shoulder to check out the bed. Nothing, not even Spot was there. Fili was slightly disappointed when he didn’t find Kili there, but figured that he was probably still more comfortable sleeping on the couch. They had only known each other for a week, after all.

Noticing he was still dressed completely in yesterday’s after-work clothing, Fili slipped off his shoes and threw his shirt and shorts into the overflowing laundry basket sitting in the corner. He heard Spot get up in the living room and his toenails click down the hall and into the bedroom with Fili. His tail wagged idly, and sped up when Fili shuffled over, sluggishly rubbing scratching his face.

“You hungry boy? ‘K let’s get you some food, c’mon,” Fili yawned, following Spot out of the room. He made sure to check the couch for any sign of Kili, but was crestfallen when he found nothing. As they entered the kitchen, Fili was taken aback when he found that Spot’s food bowl was already filled (and half eaten).  
“I can’t believe it,” Fili said, dramatically throwing a hand to his forehead, “you’ve finally learned to feed yourself. Oh man does this ever take such a weight off my shoulders!”  
Spot barked and circled around him, whipping Fili’s legs with his tail.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll take you out in a minute. Let me just put myself together-- hn?” Fili spotted a sheet of paper sitting on the stove, and all thoughts flew out the window as he picked it up and read it.

‘Went to volunteer for a few hours and pick up paycheck. Fed Spot and took him out. Gave him a few treats, hope you don’t mind. Will be busy for the rest of the day sorry :( ‘  
There was a long arrow beneath the writing point to the other side of the page. Fili flipped it over but didn’t read it right away. Instead he looked to Spot.  
“Well, well,” he told him, “I see you’re being spoiled quite a bit now, aren’t you? Not that you don’t deserve it,” he smiled, crouching to the ground and rubbing Spot’s head and ears vigorously. In return, Spot licked Fili’s face all over. Fili pushed him away and returned to Kili’s note.

_‘I wasn’t born mute. I’m telling you what happened, but I don’t want to talk about it next time we see each other, or ever. You’ll know, and that’s it._

_Six years ago I was walking home from a concert with some mates. They had to take a piss, both of them, so we went down some alley. A group of punks showed up, fucking of course, and wanted to mug us. We resisted, but we were really fucking drunk, so they easily kicked our asses. Of the three of us, my mate Ril managed to get off with only a broken arm. Banin died, they smashed his head in. They slit my throat. The hospital got some sort of emergency surgery set up for me; it worked, but they fucked up my larynx. Someone apparently told a joke that was so funny, the surgeon’s hand slipped. I tried to sue, but I didn’t have the money. So here I am today. That's it, ok?'_

Fili stared blankly at the page. A cold dread had filled his chest, and he gently placed the paper on the ground and stood up. So now he knew the story behind that wretched scar that marred Kili’s visage, and it was certainly a lot to take in. Without thought, he went to the fridge to grab himself a drink. He looked at the clock. It was only eleven, and he had the day off. Fili’s first reaction to such news was to go to Kili and comfort him, but the note said not to…

His phone began ringing shrilly in the other room, startling both him and Spot. Fili went ahead and hurried to find the phone. It was vibrating on the side table next to his bed, dangerously close to falling off to the ground and underneath the bed. Fili picked up his pace and slid to the table thanks to his socks. He slammed right into it, stubbing his toe and launching the phone off it. Flailing, Fili managed to catch it just barely.

“Hullo?” he answered, clenching his teeth through the throbbing in his foot. His grimace melted away and morphed into a grin. “Dwalin! You’re in town? Why-- _yes_ , what makes you think you even have to ask? The nearest one to you would be in the town center, I can meet you there,”

He was hopping around now holding the phone to his ear with his shoulder, struggling to tug on a pair of pants he lazily pulled from his hamper.

“Yeah, that’s the one. See you in a bit,” as he hung up the phone and tossed it onto his bed (a move he would surely regret later, and yet still didn’t go to grab it), his grin had only grown wider. He couldn’t believe it. Dwalin, the man who had practically raised him, was _here_. Fili had been the one to move away across the country, alone and with no connections. None of his remaining family had any reason to be here. He didn't think much of it though, it had been ages since he'd seen any of what was left of his family, and he was ecstatic.

 

 

 

“It’s been half a year since I’ve seen you, boy, and how many times have you called me? Maybe once, and it was to rub the loss of my team in my face.” Fili’s grin returned to his face when he saw the man he knew as an uncle. He surged forward and embraced him, letting himself be engulfed in a bear hug. They stepped back and took seats at the bar, ordering their drinks.

“You deserved it old man. After all that boasting you had been doing right before I moved out here, I just had to,”

“Yeah, yeah, I know, don’t be a smartass, brat. Didn’t mean you had to go and give us all the cold shoulder,”

Fili grimaced and looked away.

“You’re right, I’ve neglected you guys. I’ve just been-- it’s work, you know how the job is. Barely have days to myself,” Dwalin threw a hand onto his back and rubbed it.

“I know that all too well. Not for the next week though. I'm here on a mission, to make sure you're alright and you're not living on ramen noodles and sleeping in a box."

"Oh, and what if I were sleeping in a box? Did you plan in staying in there with me?" Fili laughed. He finished off his pint and ordered another for him and his uncle.

“That was fast, sport. I’m only half done with my first!” Dwalin accepted the second drink, but moved it out of his way for the time, “You’re too noble, you’ll be giving me your cold, hard box. You get the colder, harder ground. So, tell me about all the trouble you’ve been getting into for the last six months,”

 

 

 

Kili exhaled a lungful of smoke, leaning over the railing outside his front door. He could hear in the distance muted laughter, and looked at his phone to check the time. It was almost midnight on a Saturday evening. Without a doubt it was just two drunkards stumbling about, trying to find their way home. The shouting and laughter got louder and louder until it rounded the corner, and Kili could have laughed when he saw it was Fili. Fili and some stranger, with Fili’s arm slung over his large shoulder as they staggered towards Fili’s apartment. A great big bruise marred Fili’s cheek, and there were a few scrapes to accompany them.

They reached the stairs, where the stranger careened straight into the railing. Both of them erupted in hysterics, and Fili stepped forward to grab the stranger’s arm, pulling him back. Their laughter tapered off into giggles, then to nothing. It was after Kili took another long drag on his cigarette that Fili seemed to finally notice him.

“Kili! Look, lookit. Dwalin look it’s-- Kili,” Kili waved back idly, not nearly as enthused as his neighbor.

“Who’s Kili?”

“That’s Kili, you ding dong! See how… _hot_ he is?? He burns brighter than the brightest star, Sirius. A-and literally, too, I’ll have you know. That’s how we met-- he almost burned his apartment to the ground! Silly egg kept a food in the oven for wa-y too long! Ha ha, you should have _seen_ the thing, it was, it was a black, smoking brick and _good lord,_ ”

The stranger, Dwalin, began laughing so hard he had to sit down on the stairs. Kili stubbed out his cigarette and dug into his back pocket to grab his pack, pulling out another, feeling a headache coming on.

“Kili! Another already? You just finished that other one! That’snot good for you… that’s okay though,” Fili continued, squinting up at the stars for a few seconds. His chin fell from the air, his eyes lagging behind them and landing on Kili, who still had yet to crack a smile at him. “I love you just the way you are,” he grinned. It turned into a giggle, and he tripped over his feet on his way to sit next to Dwalin. Kili’s jaw clenched.

“Love! That’s a strong word. How long have you known each other?”

Fili seemingly ignored him, resting his head on the other railing. He dramatically looked up over his shoulder, to Kili. He grinned brightly. For the first time, Fili’s _pits of hell_ on his cheek irritated him. The dimples, the little accent on Fili’s countenance that had Kili tripping over his own feet. Now they were just there, and they wouldn’t go away. Blessedly, Fili finally looked away.

“But soft! What light through yonder… window? Breaks! It’s east, an-d Kili isthe sun!”

What. Kili nearly dropped what was left of his cigarette. Instead, he took a long, long drag. He held the smoke in his lungs for as long as he could, while Fili continued.

“Rise up! Rise up hot sun, and kill me the envious mo-on, for I am sick and grief--vous. Grievous. My lady, my love!”

“What? No, you’re saying it all wrong. You skipped several lines! It’s ‘and kill the envious moon, who is sick and pale with grief,’ you buffoon,”

“Nonono _you’re_ wrong, I did this play in kid school, I know it,”

“Yeah I remember that, you were Shrub #2. No, listen, it’s--”

Kili ground his cigarette butt into the railing and flicked it away. Neither Fili or Dwalin noticed him walk away into his home. They continued belting out drunken Shakespeare while Kili sat inside watching television, the volume on low. It wasn’t so he could still hear them, he told himself, it was because he had a headache and didn’t know exactly where his aspirin was.

“Sleep well Kili with peace in thy… chest! Would I sleep and… rest and… sweet rest…!” Fili blabbered on. Kili could practically feel Fili’s exaggerated movements.

“A-nd scene.” Dwalin smacked his hands on the stone step he sat on.

“Oh we did it. Kili! Ki-- ah, he’s gone! _Oh_ , he’s gone,” Fili lamented. He stayed quiet momentarily, letting the crickets do all the work. “I don’t think he liked it. I’m stupid. I’m so fucking stupid! I wouldn’t like it either if I were him… or anyone else, really. Aha, I’m so fucking pathetic, can't believe I did that...”

“Hey! You stop that nonsense right now. We’ve talked about this before, you, Thorin an’ me. Remember? You’re _not_ pathetic, okay? You’re anything but. You’re amazing, Fili, really. Don’t say things like that! This is why I'm here, to make sure you're doing okay. If you're not, you're coming back home with me, okay? _Okay?_ ”

Fili never replied, and Dwalin sighed. Kili listened to Dwalin mumble something to Fili, but he couldn’t make it out. The pair walked to Fili’s front door, where Fili struggled with first finding his keys, then even more so with actually getting it in the lock. The door opened, then shut just a bit too firmly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ick, I set a goal for myself to publish a chapter at least every 1-3 days, but see how well that turned out? Oh well, I've been working, that's my excuse :P This chapter was supposed to have a lot of other stuff going on, therefor making it hella longer but this is what happened and I have to be at work at four in the morning. So ciao! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, pleeeaassse comment! Makes me super happy~! ♥ Oh PS the official song of this fic is Plain Sailing Weather by Frank Turner


	5. Chapter 5

Kili laid out on his homely old couch. It was noon, he had nothing going on, and he was _bored_. Nothing too interesting was playing on cable, and he had no shows to catch up on. He checked his phone, not caring that he had just done so exactly… three minutes ago. He sighed and tossed the device back on his coffee table, it landing with a heavy thump on top of some junk mail coupon books.

He sat up, stretched his legs, and rolled onto his stomach. His chin rested on the arm of the couch and it was extremely uncomfortable, making him able to only stand being that way for a few seconds. He shifted around again to return laying on his back. He flopped his head to the side, focusing back on the television. A series of commercials were playing, and each one made Kili more and more irritated. The remote control was down by his feet. He lightly put his foot on it and tried dragging it within arms reach, but it slipped off and clattered to the floor. Luckily, everything stayed intact.

Kili repeated his earlier action of placing his foot on top of it, dragging it over until finally he could reach down and grab it and turn off the television. ‘Well that was enthralling,’ he thought. He picked his phone back up to check the time. Six minutes in total had passed. Kili’s arm flew up to his face and pinched the bridge of his nose. Then he heard a loud thump from upstairs, and a muffled shout plus some laughter. A-ha, perfect. Kili hopped to his feet and tugged his shoes on, haphazardly tying up the laces. He was out the door and down the stairs in less than a minute.

It took Fili much longer than that to answer the door. Except it wasn’t Fili. It was his houseguest, the one Kili had completely forgotten about. Dwalin, if he remembered correctly. He was much, much taller than Kili remembered him being, and he supposed the large tattoo-covered biceps were supposed to be intimidating… which they were.

“Well, what is it? What do you want? This isn’t about the banging around a few minutes ago, is it? It was the dog, knocked over a lamp is all, we took care of it,”

Kili’s eyebrows were raised quite high, and he glanced behind the man’s shoulder. He gave him a fake smile and tried to move around him into the apartment. Dwalin frowned and threw his arm out, successfully blocking Kili.

“Where the hell do you think you’re going?” he asked, incredulous. Kili gestured sharply behind the man as if it were obvious. Dwalin laughed, and again stopped Kili from shoving past him. Kili’s eyes narrowed, lips pursed.

‘Fuck off! Who do you think you are, you can’t stop me from doing what I want, fucker!’ he signed, his glare intensifying by the second. After signing at Dwaling another ‘Fuck you!’, he turned to leave. He was shocked then when Dwalin’s hand struck out like a viper, grabbing Kili’s wrist in a vice-like grip.

“Now that was _incredibly_ rude. If you think you’re somehow getting in to see Fili _now_ ,” Dwalin interrupted himself with a little chuckle and a shake of his head, “Boy, are you stupid. Get the fuck out of here, punk,” he finally loosened his grip on Kili’s wrist, who had been struggling to get free. Kili stumbled back slightly at the suddenness of it, and his gaze bore into Dwalin fiercely. Dwalin grinned.

“You didn’t expect that, did you? You just assumed I couldn’t understand what you were saying. Yeah, that’s how I wooed my husband. He teaches those classes, so I took them in order to meet him years ago. So is that all? If so,” he stepped back and shut the door firmly in Kili’s face.

A wave of fury rushed through Kili’s chest, and before he could think about what he was doing, he raised his leg and slammed his foot against the door heavily. He turned and stormed back up the stairs and into his own apartment, slamming the door behind him. A quick search led to Kili spotting and swiping up his carton of cigarettes, and he went out onto his balcony to smoke angrily. And then he had a thought. Kili was bored and horny, goddammit, and there was a giant muscle golem standing in between him and his prize-- that smokin’ hot piece of ass. Kili was sure Dwalin was just standing there at the door just waiting for him to come back. The front door. … The front door. Kili’s heart began racing at his excitement and surety at how brilliant an idea it was.

Flicking his cigarette off to the side, Kili grabbed the balcony railing and launched himself over it. The landing was jarring, and he took a shaky step before immediately collapsing to his hands and knees. He tried to get up but his ankles still ached, so he let himself fall back down for a few moments. When he was ready, Kili hopped back to his feet and ran over to Fili's patio, scaling the old wooden lattice. He could see Fili sitting on his couch with a beer in his hand, and petting Spot. He was looking up and talking to someone, Dwalin, who was standing in the kitchen doorway.

A changing commercial on Fili's television distracted Kili momentarily. He stood pressed against the glass door, hands and nose leaving marks. He knocked on it, and it got the desired effect. Fili's face shot in his direction, and smiled widely upon seeing Kili, waving. Kili waved back, and his grin was so big his eyes were forced nearly closed. He began gesturing to Fili, hoping he'd understand.

'You, me, up?'

Fili looked and pointed to the ceiling, tilting his head in confusion. Kili nodded enthusiastically before repeating the gestures with the addition of briefly jogging in place. Fili laughed, but then looked over to Dwalin, unsure. Kili smacked the door again with the palm of his hand. Fili turned back to him just in time to see Kili do the same series of gestures one more time, but this time Kili lewdly began humping the door, making sure to breath on the glass so as to leave a bit of fog. To his delight, Fili was staring at him with his mouth slightly ajar. Fili stood and made to walk to his door, but was stopped and distracted by Dwalin.

Kili watched as Dwalin progressively talked Fili out of leaving. Kili banged on the door. He tried to plead as expressively as possible to the man, smiling sweetly.

That seemed to do the trick. Fili ducked his head to hide his smile. He turned his attention back to Dwalin, spoke to him some more and even pat him on the shoulder. Finally, Fili was out the door.

Before turning and leaping back over the lattice so he could run to meet Fili, Kili made eye contact with Dwalin. The other man was standing with his arms crossed, a frown stretched across his face. Kili’s nose scrunched up as he smiled, holding up his middle finger to the glass door. Dwalin just turned away.

Kili sprinted around the building and crashed into Fili.

"Hey," Fili grinned, helping Kili right himself and entwining their hands. He gestured to Kili's apartment. "Yeah?" Kili smirked and nodded, leading the way. If Fili had to go save the day _again_ from a stray lit-cigarette accident a bit later on, there was no one who really needed to know that other than he and Kili.

  
  


 

 

 

Fili rushed up the stairs at the fastest speed he was able with his arms full. He gently placed his load to the side of Kili's door, and ran back to his own home to grab the rest. He kept a hold on that second armful, using one free arm to knock on the door anxiously. Almost immediately Kili, who had not been super sneakily spying on Fili curiously, swung the door wide open. He peered at Fili’s goods, raising his eyebrow. Fili’s expression matched his, not being able to take his eyes off Kili’s mostly bare chest; the only thing covering it was an old red apron covered in flour.

“Hey!” Fili greeted, tearing his eyes away up to Kili’s face. “I uh, I brought you some things! I know it’s been like a month, but I noticed yesterday when we… hung out that you hadn’t gotten new plants or anything, so I thought I’d go out and get you some new ones? I remember you mentioning you were extra upset about your plants burning in that fire,”

Kili stared at him, a goofy smile on his face. He stepped forward and embraced Fili, resting his head in the crook of Fili’s neck. It was followed by a long, passionate kiss that left Fili glowing. He stood back and picked up the first box filled with potted plants and seeds, and led Fili inside. They put the boxes down, one on the kitchen counter the other on the tiny kitchen table. Kili went to his fridge and pulled out a couple bottles of water, offering one to Fili. He took it with a small thanks and examined the kitchen. Evidence of some kind of baking endeavor were all laid out, and it was apparent that Kili had been right in middle of it when Fili showed up. Kili went right back to his bowl, continuing to mix his ingredients together.

“Oh, was I interrupting something?” Fili asked, sliding up behind Kili and peering over his shoulder. Kili smiled when he felt Fili’s hands snake around his hips, clasping together and resting right above his groin. “I was thinking…” Fili began, his voice much lower and more husky than it was mere seconds ago, “I could interrupt you for a bit longer? ‘M sure it won’t do much harm to stick this stuff in the fridge for a little while,”

Kili smirked. Grabbing his bottle of water from next to him, he undid the cap and splashed Fili in the face with it. Fili stumbled back, shocked, and Kili pursed his lips to try and keep himself from laughing. “What the fuck?” Fili asked as Kili grabbed his phone and typed out a message.

‘It’s pretty hot in here. Thought you could use some cooling down,’

Fili stared at him. He let out a sharp, unbelieving laugh.

“Oh! Oh yeah? You’re bein’ a bit bitter. Here, let me help you sweeten up darling,” he walked over and grabbed a handful of blackberries, then smashed them into Kili’s face, dragging his hand down slowly. Kili let out an equally horrified gasp and turned to gape at Fili, his face black and purple, but he was grinning. Fili laughed out loud at him. “Here, let me help you out,” he said, sauntering right up in Kili’s space. He grabbed his chin and began licking, sucking and nipping at his jaw and cheek. Kili choked out a laugh and pushed him away, sticking his hand in the bag of flour and flinging some. They were engulfed in a huge flour cloud, and they proceeded to find any sort of foodstuffs to throw at each other until they were on the ground tussling.

“Okay! Okay okay, you win,” Fili yelled out, trying to writhe away from Kili’s relentless tickling. Kili finally let up, smiling at the man laying beneath him and his straddled legs. It stretched wider and wider when he felt something firm pressing against his thigh. Fili laughed awkwardly, turning his head away and trying to hide his blush with one hand. Just as he went to apologize for making his kitchen a mess, Kili bent down and captured his mouth with his own.

  
  


 

 

 

“Hey, Kili, you made it!” Kili turned and saw Bofur strolling towards him, grinning and holding two large drinks. “Birthday Boy will love to see that you showed. Here, drink? Oh, you’ve got one already. Ha, more for me! Thanks kid. Have fun!”

Bofur gulped down one of his drinks like a dying man with water and slammed the empty glass on the counter so he could slap Kili’s shoulder. Kili waved at him slightly as he left the room.

“He-y, Kili, you made it!”

Kili had the breath knocked out of him before he could flip around. He was sure a brick wall had slammed into him, but it was just Fili. His initial rage ebbed away slightly when he looked over his shoulder to see the small blond who was bent over, holding onto Kili’s sides like a wobbly child on roller skates. His drink sloshed onto the front of Kili’s shirt upon impact and a spike of irritation shot through Kili’s heart. Fili’s shoes were missing, and he was wearing a small paper party hat. Kili bit down on his lip to keep from giggling at the tickling sensation Fili was causing, climbing himself back straight using Kili’s torso. Kili was still enraged at being hit so hard, and he didn’t want to be distracted.

“Aw my drink no--” Fili whined, the rest of his drink spilling onto the tiles. Kili nodded and pulled Fili over to the counter, annoyed. He gestured towards his sock clad feet, pulling Fili’s empty red solo cup from his hand.

“Ohhh… I… ?? I’m pretty sure they came off… okay one’s in the living room, at least. The other one should be with the other one but I… will find out? Let’s go together. C’mon we should be holding hands for this,” Fili grabbed Kili’s hand and led him out of the kitchen and into Bofur’s nice living room. He completely ignored the lazy drawled cheer that burst out of the other patrons when they entered. “See there’s it is,” Fili told him, looking very determined.

Kili nodded, going along with the motions as Fili continued dragging him on over to his shoes. “Here, all yours.” he bent over and grabbed the sneakers, holding them on Kili’s chest. Kili took them as someone stood in the corner of his eye and walked over. Dwalin. Kili’s smile slid away into a sneer.

“Fili, hey, that’s enough kiddo. Let’s get you something to eat before you have another drink,” he grabbed Fili’s forearm and gently pulled him away, the shoes falling to the ground with a loud smack. Fili didn’t voice any complaints, just flopped his head over his shoulder to watch Kili.

Kili waved at him and dusted off the dried mud that had stuck to his shirt from the shoes. Asshole or not, at least he was putting an end to Fili’s drinking, who was obviously well past his limit. Kili went and sat down next to another guest, lifting his glass in greeting to the lanky redhead.

“Oh, you must be the mute,”

Kili sat back a bit in shock, slightly offended. The man chuckled and threw his hands up in faux surrender. “I see I’ve struck a nerve. Sorry. I’m Nori. And yo-u a-re… Kili? Yeah. Fili and Kili. Kili and Fili. How quaint.” Kili stared at him, less than amused. Nori smirked.

“Listen up, kiddo,” Kili’s frown deepened. He wasn’t a fucking kid, and he’d sure as hell like it for people to stop calling him that. Nori got really close then, their noses almost touching. “Don’t fuck up.” he placed his hand on Kili’s shoulder, but Kili snarled and shoved it off. Nori smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “Here, have another drink. It’ll help with the shitty attitude,” he told him, taking his own cup and forcing it into Kili’s hand before high-tailing it out of there.

The empty cup in Kili’s other hand was annihilated and abandoned on the ground. He looked at Nori’s-- now his, drink, and seethed. The man was right, being drunk would lighten him up a bit. He began drinking it, peering over the cup to look at everyone else who was ignoring him. He didn’t want people to see him drinking Nori’s drink, to see him _submit_ to that man. _He_ had a shitty attitude? That fucker was a creep!

“Kili!”

Fili was skating across the floor in his socks, half a burger in one hand, a beer bottle held against his chest in the crook of the arm, and a mysterious box in the other hand. “Ki’ look what Bofur got me,” Fili slid up into the couch, falling down onto it. He showed Kili the box. It was a variety of little chocolates filled with shots of several different alcohols. Kili wanted to laugh. The box came out of his hand with little resistance and was tossed onto his other side, and he signed to Fili to eat his food while he grabbed the beer away from him too.

Protesting and yanking the drink back, Fili obediently took a bite of his burger. “I am,” he said, Kili cringing and looking away at seeing it in his mouth.

‘Close your mouth,’ he signed.

“S’rry,” Fili said. Kili stopped and looked at Fili oddly.

‘You understand me?’ he signed. Fili shook his head.

“S’rry I don’t know what that one is yet. Oh Dwalin’s been teaching me. Said you n’ him had a nice chat the other day so I asked him if he could teach me, since… he’s only going to be here fer another cuppl-a days, and I just thought-- you’re welcome?” Fili smiled hopefully. Kili thanked him in sign and looked away, glaring. He didn’t need _pity_ from his... from _Fili_ , of all people. He looked over to the blond.

He was sitting with himself in silence with a blank expression. He took in a deep breath and sighed, in his own little world.

Kili’s heart ached. His family didn’t even bother to learn sign language for him. His relationship with them had already been slightly strained ever since he came out of the closet, but when he lost the ability to speak they just dropped him like a rock in a river. He hated to admit it, but it meant a lot that Fili would do that. He grabbed Fili’s drink when he was turned away and quickly finished it off.

“There you two are! Fili, we have your cake ready, come out and get a slice. Bring your angry boyfriend,”

Kili’s head shot up to glare at them, but sat back in shock. A tall, gorgeous, voluptuous woman was walking their way. She had long, red hair and perfect boobs… He wrenched his eyes away, to Fili.

The man had jumped up with a shout of joy. “Tauriel! When did you get here? I didn’t know you were back in town!” he ran over and swept her up in a huge bear hug, leaving her laughing. It was the most beautiful and alluring sound he had ever heard.

“Kili, want cake? C’mon let’s get some, it should be Kahlua,” Fili smiled again, grabbing his hand. Kili shook his head and tugged it loose. Fili watched him, baffled. “What?” Kili just shook his head and widened the distance between them, smiling slightly.

The cake was nice. Double chocolate Kahlua, just as Fili said. Everyone was standing in a circle around a firepit, eating cake and drinking booze, chatting with each other. Kili spent the time next to Tauriel, giggling with her loudly and making a few passes at her, while Fili stood on the other side of the circle, watching everyone enjoy themselves. He was smiling at them all, but his eyes slid right over Kili and Tauriel each time. He nearly leaped out of his skin when a hand came out of nowhere and landed on his shoulder. It was Dwalin, and he pulled Fili into a tight hug.

"Happy birthday kiddo," he told him, rubbing his back. Fili chuckled and hugged the man back.

"Yeah, thanks," he smiled into Dwalin's chest.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ♥ ! All your guys' comments make me so happy! :D


	6. Chapter 6

_ Italic text  _ is flashbacks

** Bold text  ** is the television

I figure, if anyone's as confused as I am, that from the beginning of this chapter it has been approx... a month and a half since they've met. Yeah, that'll do haha. 

 

 

* * *

 

 

The amount of black smoke in the apartment made it almost impossible for Fili to see around, even with his mask and the light attached to the top of his helmet. He crouched down slightly and pulled out his backup flashlight-- his helmet light was coated in ash now and was useless. The roar of the flames made it hard to hear much else, and the heat left him covered in a thick layer of sweat. He shone his flashlight around the room quickly, searching for any tenants left behind.

“Hello?” He called out, trudging over to a doorway. “Anyone in here! Just make a noise, any noise to let me know and I’ll help you out!”

Predictably, there was no response. His flashlight hit the corner of the room and Fili jolted back, terrified. Some sort of taxidermy animal was standing on a pedestal there, a warg? It was now a towering inferno, it’s fake eyes half melted out of the sockets and the charred fur leaving the room smelling like burned hair. “Mahal,” Fili groaned, trying to look away. One more quick scan of the area and he turned back around, looking for more rooms to search. He reached for his walkie-talkie.

“Oi Bo, anything on your end?” he asked. It took a moment for Bofur to respond.

“Nothin’. Gloin’s saying his side is clear too, he’s headed out. I’m on my way to you,” Fili just nodded and replaced the device on his coat.

There was just one last bedroom for him to check now, he was sure. When he was a few yards away, an ear-splitting crack sounded from above him. A beam from the ceiling slammed into the ground, right in front of the final closed door. The sound left a ringing in Fili’s ears, leaving him petrified and staring at the barricaded entrance.

 

_Fili stomped through the condemned building with purpose. It was his first time out on the job, and he was almost overly eager to help out everyone with everything. His crew leader, none other than his oldest uncle, Thorin, asked for someone to go in and make sure no one was left inside, and Fili’s arm shot up wildly, a bright grin on his fresh face. This was Thorin’s first job also, but as the Fire Chief instead of Deputy Chief, as he had been until today. Thrain, Thorin’s father and Fili’s grandfather, was on his last job with them before he would retire._

_“Alright, rookie. In you go,” Thorin grunted, gesturing Fili forward. Fili thanked him enthusiastically and charged on ahead. “Don’t take too long! This place will collapse at any moment,” Thorin called out after him. Not long before, the crew had been briefed that there was no saving the home. It was too far gone, and the fire too strong. They had no choice but to let it burn itself out._

_“Hello! Anyone here!” Fili yelled, stepping over a child’s large toy. Nothing. He spent the next five minutes crawling through the small house, looking for survivors. Across the kitchen was a doorway that led to the basement with its door missing. As he traipsed over to it, a large pile of debris from the ceiling started falling, right in the way and startling Fili. A large trunk had been the bulk of the weight, the landing leaving a dent in the floor. It all obstructed the majority of the doorway, keeping anyone from getting in or out. He walked over and shone his light in briefly. A laundry hamper, boots, an old couch. Nothing._

_“Fili, you’ve been in there long enough, get out!” Thorin’s voice shouted from Fili’s small radio._

_He found his way out and walked up to Thorin. He pulled off his helmet and took a deep breath, wiping the sweat from his forehead with his arm._

_“Anything?” Thorin asked. Fili shook his head._

_“Nada. She’s good to go,”_

_He and the rest of the crew watched the house burn to the ground, making sure to prevent it from spreading with a hose. They did this for about an hour until finally the flames died out and were left smoldering. Another man, Raki, was sent to investigate the basement and make sure it was safe. Thorin placed a large hand on Fili’s shoulder, and the young man’s chest swelled with pride._

_“Good job in there. You did well, just as I knew you would,”_

_A shout alerted everyone and put them on edge._

_“Raki! What is it?”_

_“Thorin! There’s someone down here!” Fili’s stomach dropped, and when Thorin glanced at him, incredulous, the color drained from his face._

_“What? Are they alive?” Thorin asked, running over to Raki and Dwalin._

_“I don’t know, they’re not responding… I’m going down, help me clear this rubble,”_

_The three men raked away the debris as quickly as they could, Raki squeezing through at his first opportunity while Thorin and Dwalin finished their task. They heard Raki yell out once more. “Raki! What is it? Who is it?” Dwalin shouted._

_“It’s Thrain! Thorin it’s Thrain!”_

_Fili could feel his world collapsing around him. Impossible! They had all seen Thrain come back out with Thorin earlier, he had come back out! Raki carried Thrain’s body up the basement stairs, and that’s when Fili began feeling faint. Those boots! He saw them, laying there! He saw them! And he did nothing. Raki placed the body down gently on the ground._

_“Thorin… he has no pulse,” Dwalin said sadly from where he was crouched. Fili could see Thorin’s knees weaken. He fell to the ground and cradled his father’s head._

_“He can still be saved! EMTs, someone get me an ambulance!” he shouted. This was Fili’s fault. All his fault. He had seen him and he did nothing! He watched as Thorin began chest compressions on Thrain in a desperate bid to save his life._

“Fili! Fili!”

The blond snapped out of the memory to see Bofur standing mere inches away from his face. “B-Bofur--”

“Welcome back! Have a nice vacation? … Fili? Hey… kid, are you okay?”

Fili nodded slowly at first, then forced a smile and nodded faster. “Yeah, I’m fine, man.”

“Yeah, I believe that,” Bofur drawled sarcastically. “Look, go on back down, I’ll meet you there,” he pat Fili’s back and shoved him gently away. Fili sighed.

“Alright. Just… check that room, okay?” Bofur looked where Fili pointed.

“I don’t know if I can, kiddo, looks pretty blocked--” Fili grappled Bofur’s shoulders and shook him.

“Check the fucking room!” He snapped, whipping around and making a hasty retreat.

  
  
  
  
  


Kili let out a soft sigh, laying back on his bed contentedly. One hand was tangled weakly in Tauriel’s hair, still mussed from their activities the night before. He was still clinging to sleep, having only just been awakened by Tauriel’s expert mouth. Small grunts continued escaping his mutilated throat until he finished, Tauriel eagerly swallowing what he gave her. She sat up on her knees and wiped her mouth with her arm, then crawled up to Kili and lay on his chest. He immediately was filled with discomfort, stiffening up when Tauriel brought up a hand to rub his chest, threading through the hair there. It was just as she buried her face in the crook of his neck, taking a deep breath through her nose, that he shook her off and got to his feet.

He had thought Fili was clingy, but this broad… he hated physical affection. Growing up, it was not something he ever got from his family. His parents were strict in his upbringing, and his siblings were too far apart in age from each other to form real attachments.

Kili’s thoughts wandered to Fili. It had been a week and a half since the man’s birthday. He was avoiding him. Fili had been kept busy by Dwalin for the first few days, but now the man had gone home and Fili was back by himself. He kept regularly sending Kili annoying texts, asking if he’d like to hang out on his few days off or go out to eat. Kili’s replies were short and precise, ‘can’t, busy,’ or ‘maybe.’ Any text that included a winky-face emoji or a heart went ignored entirely.

He grabbed his phone and typed out a quick message to Tauriel, tossing it on the bed next to her. ‘Have things to do,’. He turned away and searched the floor for his boxers and pants.

“Don’t you ever reply to texts? It’s rude not to, I think. Especially to your boyfriend… oh this is a cute picture of you two together, where was this, downtown?”

Kili’s lips pursed and he bent over the bed, yanking the device out of Tauriel’s hand just as she finished taking a sexie selfie and saving it as her contact picture. He went to stuff it in his back pocket, but reassessed his decision and took another quick photo of Tauriel, her entire figure stretched out before him. Kili hated when people called Fili that. His _boyfriend_. Definitely not, Kili didn’t do that. The closest he would come to a real relationship was friends with benefits, and that’s exactly how he saw Fili. Maybe. Fili was something with benefits. Fireman with benefits? Beneficial Drunk? Never stick your dick in crazy, they say, but crazies make the best fuck.

  
  
  
  


Kili sat out a bit away from his apartment on a park bench, his gaze fixed on the sky. His right arm was thrown across the top of the bench, the hand holding a cigarette. It looked like it would rain sometime that day. That’d be nice, get some water for his plants so he wouldn’t have to for a day or so. He took a long drag from his cigarette just as Fili appeared around a corner, dressed in his fire pants and a skin-tight navy blue tee. He was carrying two paper grocery bags overflowing with items, undoubtedly heavy from the look of Fili’s biceps. Kili took one long look at them and felt a spark of arousal course through him. Fili walked by and gave him a small smile, which Kili replied to by a slight upward jerk of his chin. He heard Fili place the bags on the ground while he unlocked the door. Spot barked happily, Fili picked up his groceries, and the door shut after Fili kicked it.

He didn’t hear his own front door open or shut, and was surprised mildly to see Tauriel appear and sit next to him. She was wearing a shirt of his; grabbed it straight from his closet. She grabbed the cigarette out of Kili’s hand when he brought it up to his mouth and took a drag of it, handing it back. Kili was more than irritated now, but was distracted by Tauriel stealing a kiss from him.

“I gotta go. Call me!” she called to him, having gotten up immediately after her kiss. She laughed at her own joke and disappeared around the corner.

Kili got one minute and twenty-seven seconds to himself before Fili plopped down next to him, where Tauriel just was.

“Hey,” he greeted, a small smile gracing his lips. His face and arms were covered in soot, and he hadn’t bothered to change clothes yet. He looked tired. Kili quirked an eyebrow, snubbed out his cigarette and flicked the butt, and grunted in acknowledgment. They sat in comfortable silence for a while, Kili enjoying the wind and overcast weather. Then Fili closed the distance between them. There had been about five inches of space keeping them apart, but in one motion Fili slide over until his butt, hips and shoulder were touching Kili’s. Kili stiffened up and turned his head to look at Fili, but was met with Fili’s head colliding with his own, interrupting Fili as he had begun to lay his head on his shoulder.

“Oh shit!” Fili laughed, having to scoot away an inch and hold his nose. It wasn’t bleeding, but it was turning red, just as Kili’s forehead was. Kili laughed through his nose and rubbed his head. “You alright?” Fili asked him, and Kili nodded. “Yeah, sorry about that… touching thing. I know you don’t really like that, I was just…” he shook his head and waved the rest of his explanation away, blushing slightly in humiliation. Kili nudged his shoulder to garner his attention, then shook his head and signed ‘OK’. His chest filled with warmth when the dimples in Fili’s face showed up with his smile.

“Hey, want to hear a joke? Bombur told me at lunch, it’s great. Where does the king keep his armies? In his sleevies,”

They stared at each other or a beat, then a broad smile split his face and his wheezing laughter filled the air. Fili’s demeanor changed dramatically in those few seconds, and he was almost glowing. ‘Stupid!’ Kili signed, the grin not leaving his face.

“Why did the scarecrow win an award? Because he was outstanding in his field,” he told Kili excitedly. Their laughter renewed itself full force, making it hard for Fili to continue. “W-what’s red and bad for your teeth? A brick. What d’ya call a labrador that becomes a magician? A labracadabrador!” they were both tearing up now from their fits, Kili holding his sore sides. Fili had several more to tell, but he decided to keep them for another time. He watched Kili instead, with his scrunched up nose and eyes squeezed nearly shut. They lapsed back into a pleasant silence.

“Hey. In a few weeks… next month, my family is having a get together at our cabin up north a bit. We do it every year. Was wondering maybe if you’d like to go? It’s for about a week, we’d get our own room, and the view there is gorgeous. Almost as much as you,” Fili offered, looking at his companion full of hope.

There was that uncomfortable feeling again, settling like a cold stone in Kili’s stomach. An invitation to a family home? That was something _couples_ did. Couples that lived together with their golden retriever in their lake house and watched basic cable TV before going to bed. Kili clenched his hands into fists onto his knees then reached out to Fili’s face and thumbed away some soot. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and sent a quick text to Fili despite him sitting less than a foot away, got up and went back into his apartment.

Fili was left confused. He didn’t have his phone on him, he left it on his counter when he was putting away his groceries. He went ahead and went back home, oddly amused when he heard Kili’s footsteps above him. He checked his phone, nodding in understanding when he saw the message from Kili. ‘I’ll let you know,’ it said. Fili read it in a positive light, and was now looking forward to the family reunion a lot more than he had been.

He went to his bedroom and changed out of his work uniform, washing the soot off his face and feeding Spot. He made himself a grilled cheese sandwich (accidentally burning it a bit) with some chips on the side, grabbed a couple of beers and plopped down on the couch, turning on the news. He was mildly surprised to see that the newscasters were currently talking about the fire he was working earlier that day.

**“An incident occurred today when an apartment across from U of E caught on fire. The apartment belongs to student Danar Faddur, and we were told it was an electrical fire,”**

_“An unfortunate tragedy occurred today during a protocol fire emergency in downtown Gondamon when Fire Chief Thrain Durin lost his life due to a faulty breathing apparatus,”_

**“None were harmed in this accident, though the damage costs are estimated to be upwards of thirteen thousand dollars,”**

_“His body was found in the home’s basement where he had succumbed to a mix of carbon monoxide poisoning and heat stress. Whether his death was preventable or not is yet to be known,”_

**“You know Orin, kids these days seem to be getting more and more--”**

Fili changed the channel, not caring that it landed on a child’s cartoon. A thousand vivid memories rushed through his mind, each one plunging him further and further into the all too familiar numb sensation that left him feeling nothing but despair and self loathing. A shaking hand reached out for his beer he had leftover, and when he finished that he walked to his bedroom in a daze, trailed by the ever loyal Spot.

 

 


	7. Chapter 7

Kili turned to Fili and laughed. Hearing the familiar wheezing sound, Fili scrunched up his nose and stuck out his tongue at him. Kili grinned wider and smacked Fili playfully on his shoulder. Fili hissed, dropping his controller and holding his arm.

“I got banged up at work right there, jerk,” he chided weakly. Kili set his own controller down and lightly pushed up Fili’s shirt sleeve, taking in the dark bruise that marred the skin there. Kili’s features softened, and he leaned over and pressed a soft kiss on the blemish.

“Oh,” Fili said softly, “I’ve got an injury here, too,” Fili pointed to his mouth, staring at Kili blankly. “It really hurts,”

Kili rolled his eyes, not able to keep a smile off his face. He nodded and let out an over dramatic sigh, grabbing Fili’s face in his hands and slotting their mouths together gently. They stayed like that, kissing each other passionately for as long as they could manage before having to breath. Kili pulled back and tilted his head curiously at Fili. The other man grinned and nodded.

“Much better, thank you,” he said. He reached to the coffee table in front of them and grabbed his beer. Spot, who had been brought up to Kili’s along with Fili, got up and walked over to Kili, wagging his tail and hoping for some attention. Kili obliged him happily, a small smile gracing his lips. He looked up at Fili and just stared. The sun was shining through a window, and the light hit Fili just perfectly, making his short blond hair appear golden. Forcing himself to look away, Kili picked his controller back up and gestured to his television.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, another round. One more, and this time I _will_ win!” Fili challenged, poking Kili’s chest. Kili smirked. He pointed to himself and held up three fingers, then pointed to Fili and curled his hand into a fist. Fili laughed. The sound always warmed Kili’s chest, and he realized how glad he was to have met the other man.

“I’ll get you yet! Here wait let’s play Mario Kart instead, I’m better at that,” he slid off the couch and rifled through Kili’s pile of games, replacing the current one in the console with it. Kili smirked.

‘Prepare to lose!’ he signed. Fili was only able to understand ‘lose’, but he figured out the message well enough and laughed again, putting the drink down.

They started up the game, and Kili was flying high on the adrenaline left over from the last game.

“Oh you fucker! That’s fucking cheating I swear on me mum!” Fili yelled as Kili used an item against him. He grinned as he passed Kili on the track again, using his own item to make sure Kili wouldn’t be able to catch up to him easily. It took a while, but Kili finally managed it, and for the rest of the match they were neck and neck. Things were looking great for Kili, but right at the last second, Fili used his secret weapon-- a lightning bolt. Kili’s character spun out and was stunned for a few seconds, and Fili sped past him to the finish. An anguished, infuriated noise came from Kili’s throat, leaving Fili in hysterics. Irritated, Kili pressed reset on the game. It went much the same, Fili kicking his ass at just the last minute. The next level went that way, too, and the next one, and the next one. For each round of the game they played, Kili lost, and his anger spiked up more and more. Fili went ahead and started the next level. Predictably, Fili had Kili beat in record time.

“Wow, Kili, you fucking suck!” Fili laughed from behind the bottle at his mouth. Kili threw his controller across the room, enraged. “Woah, Kili. Come on, it’s just a game. No need to--”

Fili reeled back as Kili turned to him and punched his beer out of his hand, it flying a ways before hitting the floor and shattering, its remaining contents creating a large wet spot. Fili jumped to his feet, horrified.

“Kili! What the fuck! You need to calm down.”

Kili did anything but that. He stood up also, and surged forward, shoving Fili away from him forcefully. Less than sober, Fili didn’t think much before reacting. After stumbling back from the blow, he did the same thing right back to Kili. The other man tripped over Spot, who was standing, growling at him, and crashed to the floor. Fili, now equally as infuriated as Kili, turned and went out onto the patio. He glanced over his shoulder to make sure Kili was watching, flipped him off, then unzipped his shorts and began peeing on Kili’s new plants. Kili looked on, shocked.

He climbed back to his feet and stormed out to Fili. He grabbed the blond and yanked him away from the plants, and in the process managed to get some urine on himself. He nearly retched, jumping away as Fili sneered and tucked himself away.

“That’s what you get, fucker,” Fili spat. Seeing red, Kili grabbed Fili by the collar of his shirt and slammed him up against the glass door. Inside, Spot began barking wildly. He ran to the door and began trying to open it himself, scratching at the tiny gap left by Kili frantically. The growling returned when Kili clutched Fili’s throat and _squeezed_ , a response to Fili’s messy punches. Fili’s struggles grew weaker after a few long moments of their scuffle, his vision growing fuzzy and edged by black. Spot managed to open the door wide enough finally, and shoved his way through. He immediately flung himself at Kili, clamping down on the man’s calf viciously. Kili shouted out and jerked away, trying to tear himself free from Spot’s mouth. Fili shoved him away weakly and staggered towards the door. Gasping for breath, he leaned up against the glass. He turned to glare at Kili, who was still struggling with Spot.

“You… have _serious_ _fucking issues_. Spot!” his dog let go of Kili at last, and shuffled over to Fili, hiding behind him. He continued growling at Kili. “Spot we’re leaving, let’s go boy,” Fili snapped his fingers and went inside, waiting for Spot to follow before slamming it shut. Kili watched him spit on his carpet before stomping out the front door.

  
  
  
  
  


Hours later Kili was standing by his door, still quite livid. He had cleaned up the spilled drink, but it left a stain on his carpet, and he blamed Fili for it. He may have over-watered his plants, trying to rid them of the urine there. _Disgusting. Stupid drunken asshole_  he had thought. He didn’t know why he kept associating with Fili, the man clearly had problems. He slipped on his shoes and grabbed his car keys. He was hungry, but his fridge was pretty empty, so he was headed off towards the grocery store.

In the produce section, he watched a man packing his cart almost full with nothing but carrots, as Kili was comparing beets. He couldn’t help but snort at the scene. Fili loved carrots, he’d probably be mildly upset at seeing one man with all those carrots. Actually, Fili would be that man. Fili loved those vegetables so much Kili was surprised he wasn’t orange! A smile stretched wide across Kili’s face for a moment. Then he remembered earlier in the day, and it dropped instantly. He put both beets in his basket, and a stalk of celery for good measure. He moved onto the pasta aisle and grabbed a few boxes of spaghetti and shells, then a bottle of pasta sauce. He didn’t like buying pre-made stuff like this, but he just couldn’t bring himself to do all the work for it today.

He began walking down the center aisle towards the paper plates and napkins, glancing down another aisle when he heard something fall and someone yell out in frustration. Kili stopped and watched as a small blond boy attempted to pull a large, heavy bag of dog food off a shelf too high for him. Without thinking Kili hurried down to him, putting his basket down and pulling the food into his arms. The little boy stared up at him with big, blue eyes.

“Oh wow thank you! Um…” he held out his arms, “you can put it here, I can do it now,” he said, earnest. Kili shook his head and shifted the bag easily on his shoulder, leading the boy (who was holding Kili’s handbasket with both his hands and in front of him) down to the napkins and tossing in a pack on sale before going to the registers. He threw the bag of food up for the boy, and took his basket back, letting him go in front of him. He watched as Little Fili-- the little boy dug through a sandwich bag filled with bills, mostly ones, and tons of change, in order to pay for it. It took a bit longer than Kili would have liked, but he knew it wasn’t something to interfere with and the boy was doing the best he could on his own. Kili wondered where his parents were.

When the boy finished his transaction, he moved to the end and looked uncertainly at his dog food, but Kili came up and pulled it over to him as he began paying for his own groceries. He handed the two bags to the boy and grabbed the dog food, and they left the store. Kili was led over to a red wagon, and a puppy was tied to the nearby bench. A Dalmatian puppy. _This is too much_ Kili thought, _this has got to be some kind of stupid coincidence. If this is some sort of stupid sign, may Mjollnir fall from the sky and pummel me into the ground now._ He placed the food in the wagon.

“Thank you sir! Bongo says thank you too! I can go home on my own now, I can! So you can go home now too. Thank you! Bye!”

Kili watched the small boy pick up Bongo and place him into the wagon, and Bongo settled on top of it. The boy waved again, picked up the wagon handle and began pulling it away. Kili watched him leave before finding his own vehicle, driving home.

He had just about reached his home when he slowed down a bit, staring at Fili’s door. Taking a moment to collect himself, he put both his bags in one hand, walked over to Fili’s and knocked firmly on the door. He ended up having to knock again a minute later. Fili’s door swung open, and Kili looked away in shame after only a brief glimpse of the man. His throat was red, and bruises were beginning to form in the shape of Kili’s hands. Kili’s hand holding the grocery bags grew sweaty, and he grabbed his phone from the other pocket. A few seconds later he heard Fili’s phone ping from somewhere in his apartment.

“... Let me guess. That’s your apology?” Fili asked solemnly. Kili’s head ducked down further and nodded almost imperceptibly. Fili snorted derisively. They continued standing awkwardly only feet away from each other for a few moments. Fili’s phone started ringing, and in response Kili began turning away to go home.

“No, stop. Just… come in. Let me take the call and then you can beg forgiveness,” he beckoned Kili in, swinging the door shut with his foot. Kili had to scramble forward and let it hit him in order to get in. Fili was already on the phone and Kili slipped off his shoes, greeted Spot and went to the kitchen to put his bags down. He immediately made himself at home, digging through cabinets and drawers looking for tools to cook spaghetti.

He heard Fili hang up minutes later, and the man appeared in the kitchen, leaning against the doorway with his arms crossed.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

Kili jumped slightly, startled. He put down the olive oil and grabbed Fili by his shoulders, steering him to the living room couch and sitting him down. He propped Fili’s legs on the coffee table, grabbed the television remote and turned the device on. He handed it to Fili, grabbed a beer from the fridge and placed it in his hand. He held up an optimistic thumbs up, eyebrows raised in hope. Fili snorted in bewilderment.

“I, uh… yeah? This is nice. Confusing, but… nice? What the fuck are you doing?” he asked as Kili dragged Spot over and shoved him onto the couch next to Fili. Spot immediately stood and jumped off, sauntering over to his bed in the corner. “Is this your way of groveling?”

Kili nodded sheepishly, shrugging and not meeting Fili’s eyes. He pulled his hair back into a messy ponytail then returned to the kitchen. He heard Fili sigh.

“Okay, well… it better be some damn fine spaghetti. And we’re watching my favorite movie… s. And--” he was interrupted by his phone ping. It was a text from Kili.

_‘sketti, shampane, cornetto & bj, yea’_

A strong laugh burst from Fili, and he threw his head back, looking at Kili upside down. The other man had his back intentionally to him, but Fili could see the tips of his ears and how they plus his neck were flushed pink.

  
  
  
  


Kili’s eyes shot open as he woke from his nightmare. It was nothing new; the same old dream about that night in the alley, as he watched his good friend get his face smashed in on the brick walls surrounding them. Kili couldn’t do anything, a vicious blow had been dealt to his head and he was being held down on the ground by one of the thugs. Ril was unconscious, and his arm was looking pretty scary in that unnatural angle. Banin was dropped to the ground, his face caved in, and he was definitely not moving. Kili felt himself dragged up from under his armpits, not quite enough to stand properly. His nose and mouth were bleeding. His bottom lip was swollen, and one of his eyebrows was split, the result of him attempting to fight them all on his own. Now his body was thrumming with unused adrenaline.

_“Was that enough persuasion? Or do you need a bit more?”_ One thug, the leader supposedly, asked. Kili tried to speak, but a spurt of blood came out instead. He was forced to swallow it back.

_“You throw punches like my granny, you soft cunt. I’ve seen fleas with bigger dicks than you lot. You’re nothing but a fuckhead, cock-guzzling, ass-clown. It’s no wonder you have to result to this line o’ work, no one in their right mind would hire any o’ you,”_ Kili had spat. All his captors cackled at him.

_“Hope you’re happy with those words being your last,”_ the leader told him. Before Kili could react properly, one of the brutes holding him whipped out a switchblade and yanked it across his throat. The sound of them running off after dropping him to the ground was always where he woke back up. When it had actually happened, Ril had regained consciousness right as Kili slammed into the ground. He was the one to call the ambulance, and had saved his life.

 

Now he lay panting and covered in sweat, in an unfamiliar bed and with a heavy weight on half his entire body. As Kili became more attentive, he realized that he was actually in Fili’s bed. How did he get here? … They had been watching the Cornetto Trilogy, eating the spaghetti Kili made. About halfway through The World’s End, Kili felt something on his shoulder. It was Fili, of course, having finally passed out from his alcohol consumption of that day (he had confided in Kili that after their… argument, he may have gone to the bar for a short time). Kili nudged him off, but a moment later… he turned off everything and took care of the dishes. Returning to the couch, he scooped up the smaller man and carried him to bed, eventually flopping down and tumbling right along with him into sleep.

Now, Fili was sprawled on top of him. His face was hidden in Kili’s neck, and his arm stretched over Kili’s torso. Kili was surprised to find that he was reciprocating the touches. His one arm was underneath Fili, which explained the excruciating numbness, curled up and holding onto his shoulder. The other hand was on his own chest, clutching Fili’s wrist, and their legs were tangled together. Fili was still completely dead to the world.

He began carefully unraveling himself from the mess when he heard a loud _thud_ from out in the living room. Kili froze. Was it just Spot? No, the dog was curled up at the end of the bed. Kili got free and climbed out of the bed, Fili snuffling and stretching out at the loss of contact, taking up the rest of the mattress.

Going at a snail’s pace, Kili edged out of the room and down the hall, hiding in the shadows. His worst nightmare was confirmed; a strange man was in the apartment, holding a flashlight between his shoulder and cheekbone as he tried to unhook the television from the wall and carry it away. Panicking, Kili looked around frantically to see if there was anything he could do. From the corner of his eye, he could see Fili’s fire boots. Kili sunk to the floor slowly and crawled over to the footwear, checking frequently to make sure the burglar hadn’t seen him.

He grabbed a boot and clambered back up, shrinking into the corner. He still hadn’t been spotted. Kili took a quiet step forward just as the man got the device off the wall. He pulled his arm back, took aim and launched the heavy boot, watching it fly unsteadily through the air. The crook glanced over his shoulder just as it connected with his face.

He collapsed instantly, the television falling from his hands and smashing all over the floor. Spot finally decided it was time to intervene, charging off Fili’s bed, barking madly. Kili had to yank and lock him in the bathroom just to keep him out of the way while he figured out what to do. Peering back down the hall, he saw that Fili hadn’t moved an inch and remain completely undisturbed. Spot was still barking, and it was grating on Kili’s nerves-- the leash! Kili lumbered about the living room, hunting the item down. When he found it, he came back and hogtied the unconscious burglar. He grabbed a hold of the man, and dragged him out of the apartment, only stopping to unlock the front door and to tie the other end of the leash to a pole next to the apartment complex’s dumpster. The man began waking at that point, groaning. Kili kicked him in the chest, then wearily crawled back to Fili’s, his feet dragging.

When he got back, Spot was still barking. Kili let the dog out, who ran into the living room and hunted around for the intruder. When he found nothing, he quieted down somewhat. Kili sluggishly reached Fili’s room. Fili had since repositioned himself, now curled back up on his own side. Kili was slightly grateful, because he knew that if Fili was still spread across the bed he wouldn’t care, and would flop down right on top of him. The last sensation Kili felt was Spot jumping back up on the bed, this time settling right in between Kili and his owner.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just finished typing this maybe 5 minutes ago. I have to be at work in 9 hours... wake me up to the sound of comments! Be they kind/hateful words, art, poetry or concerns about what might be happening in the future (seriously fkt4ev we loved that comment, it's great to imagine :P) we love them all! ♥ Hope you enjoy this one guys :3


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning was almost idyllic. Fili woke curled up around Kili, and he could tell by how deep his breathing was that the younger man wouldn’t be waking up on his own for a while yet. Fili delicately crept out of bed, taking special care to ensure Kili wouldn’t open his eyes. Spot had no such qualms about it and leaped off the bed, tearing down the hallway as loudly as he could, the tapping of his too-long nails on the wooden floor near deafening. Fili pulled on a pair of sweatpants and followed after him dutifully to feed him. Spot acted as though he had been starved for three weeks, he didn’t let Fili even finish pouring the food in the bowl when he rushed to it, not caring about the stream of kibbles raining down on his head.   
After putting the giant bag of dog food back where it belonged, Fili buried his face in the fridge. Initially his hand went straight towards a beer, just as it always did. An inch stood between the bottle and his fingers when he paused. Next to his case of beer were several water bottles, and Fili stared at them for a long moment. His eyes switched to the beer for half a second, then back to the water. Ultimately, that’s what he chose. He stood and closed the fridge door before he could change his mind.

He twisted it open and took several long gulps of the cold water, grabbed the television remote from where he spotted it on top of the fridge ( _why… is it up there? how did it get there? What??_ ), and pivoted around to turn it on. His arm hung in the air and his water bottle remained at his lips as he stared blankly at the empty wall. Rising a couple of inches on the balls of his feet to be able to look over the counter, Fili’s eyebrows pinched together in anguish and confusion. Why was his twenty-five hundred dollar, sixty-five inch, LED Ultra HD television planted solidly on the ground, smashed and obliterated? His feet fell back flat to the ground and he dragged them over to the scene of the crime. He gingerly placed his water on the coffee table and stuck his hands in his pockets, biting his lip as he toed at the wreckage. How…? It can’t have just fallen, it was several feet away. He walked to the kitchen, lethargic, and grabbed a much-needed beer. He returned to his spot, moping.

He looked up and over to the hallway when he saw some movement in the corner of his eye. Kili was standing there in his boxers rubbing a hand down his face, trying to adjust his morning wood casually. Fili had to glance away when Kili began stretching his back and stomach way too lewdly for someone who had just woken up, and that’s when he saw one of his work boots laying near the couch. A quick check confirmed that the other boot was right where it should be. His bewilderment shot up even more, and he looked questioningly up at Kili as if the man had any answers.

Kili joined his side and stared at the crumpled electronic heap with him, grimacing. Then he nudged Fili’s shoulder and pointed at the front door, which bent in slightly near the bottom and was splintered near the knob and lock. Fili looked to Kili.

“Did someone break in?” he asked, incredulous. Kili nodded. “You were up? Did you call-- wait that’s stupid. What did you do? What happened?”

Kili shrugged and nudged the stray boot with his foot. Fili’s mouth stretched into a grin.

“Did you do the shoe thing? Did you fuckin’ fling a shoe at the guy?” he asked dubiously, not able to fight back his smile. “Is that why my boot’s over here? Oh my god Kili what the hell did you do with him?” he questioned, unable to prevent the loud laugh bursting from him. Kili’s face was bright red and his shoulders hunched. He gestured to the door offhandedly. Fili giggled, but looked at Kili fondly. “You’re incredible. Really. Taking on a burglar like that? I wouldn’tve known what to do. You’re like a superhero or something. Kili by day, La Chancla by night.

“So hey, I have work today. My hours have been raised a bit dramatically, they’ve been laying people off so… you can stay if you want. I don’t know, mi casa es su casa ‘n all that, but I’ll deal with this mess later and be back… later. Like, a few days later. I’m going to take a shower… you can… watch tv-- okay, you can read a book, or… join me in there… maybe take Spot for a walk? Do what you want,” he explained, shrugging and finishing off his drink.

Kili watched him leave the room and enter the bathroom, heard the shower curtain pulled along and the shower turn on. He spun around and looked at Spot. The dog was snoozing lightly in his corner bed. Fili’s bookcase was less exciting; filled with books about photography and nature, history and agriculture, none of it really interested Kili. He tuned into the sounds of the shower, contemplating his next actions and palming himself through the thin fabric hanging off his hips. Then he scrunched his nose up, baffled at his own thought process. Why did he even have to consider other options? He was going to go get him a blowjob in a shower.

  
  
  


Kili didn’t see Fili for four days. He knew he was at work, but he didn’t really expect to not see him _at all_ , not even to walk Spot. He wondered if Spot was with him at the fire station, or stuck in the apartment. He spent those four days puttering around his own apartment, smoking his cigarettes, glancing out the windows and checking the clocks, tending his garden. When Fili finally did reappear, Kili was cooking some stir fry for himself that evening. He had heard Fili’s door slam shut not too long ago, and now there were mysterious noises floating up through Kili’s floor. He turned off the stove and dumped his fried veggies onto a plate and began listening in, trying to discern what the hell Fili was up to. He was… laughing. It was a loud, boisterous laugh that was routinely interrupted by lazy shouts. “Aaah…!” and “Stop, you’re-- stop it. Stop aaah!”

A flash a jealousy bolted through Kili. _That fucker_ , what the hell did he think he was doing? Quickly frying himself up some Tilapia, seasoning it and squeezing some lemon on it, Kili plated it up and rushed out his door to Fili’s. He impatiently pounded on Fili’s door.

_“Holy shit! I-- I can’t answer the door! Oh mahal I hope it’s unlock-ed-uh… Pizza Guy is that you? I’ll slip the money through the door-- pfffft you can’t slip things through a door. Well letterboxxx.”_

Kili tried the door and found it unlocked, and shoved his way in. Fili was sitting on his couch, head thrown back. He kept randomly twitching and jerking, laughing and making other absurd noises. There was no one else there. Kili could smell him from where he stood in the doorway. Fili was high. as. fuck. He set his meal down on the kitchen counter and walked over to Fili, plopping down about a foot away on the couch. A myriad of emotions ran through him when he noticed another striking detail about Fili. He was covered from head to toe in ladybugs. That certainly explained the twitching; those little buggers no doubt were tickling the blond mercilessly. He reached out and began brushing them off of Fili’s face for him. Fili jerked almost wildly and threw his head to look at Kili. His wide eyes were predictably red, and he looked as if he were seeing a messiah.

“Holy shit. Holy shit. Kili. Holy shit. These ladybuggers are yours. Yours, I--” he cut himself off and took a long, deep breath through his nose. He stared at Kili’s face for an extended moment then whipped his head back to the other direction. After three seconds he seemed to startle and looked back to Kili.

“Door? Did you-- close it. I uh-- the ladies can get out if open… or someone will come in! You came in! Did _I_ leave the door??” he panicked. Every time a ladybug crawled onto Fili’s neck or face, Kili would blow at it or brush it with a finger to get it away. Each time it happened Fili would hum quietly, but he would frequently check over his shoulder, paranoid. Kili patted his pockets searching for his phone. He forgot it, _again_. He got up and scrounged around for a slip of paper, but ended up having to settle for a paper towel. He wrote his message slapdash, stuck the marker in his back pocket and picked his plate up on the way back. Carefully placing it on the arm of the couch he tried to hand the paper towel to Fili. The blond seemed to have completely forgotten about Kili entirely, going back to just staring at the ceiling, twitching. Kili held the note over his face, only inches away. Its appearance stunned him, but Kili could see his eyes move as he read it. ‘ **Explain. Now.** ’ it said.

Fili’s mouth slowly opened wide, but other than that he made no move to speak. Kili nudged him, making Fili gape at him. His eyes shot down to Kili’s plate on the couch arm. Rolling his eyes and annoyed, Kili grabbed the food and held it out to the stoned blond next to him. Fili’s arm inched over to it, and he didn’t bother with the fork at all, picking chunks out of the fish and shoving them into his mouth. He stopped after the fourth bite and let out an intense yawn, his jaw snapping in the process.

“Um. Work. It was. It was work. Sorry I’m trying. It’s hard. I can’t-- I was working. B-big big big fire innnnn aaaaa wa-rehouse. It turns out weed. So much. So much weed. Had t-to give m’mask to someone trapped in there and I got rrrreeaaaalllllyyy h-i-gh. Idon’t like. it. Idon’t Idon’t. Kili I--” Fili stared into Kili’s soul, hyperventilating.

Kili grimaced. Fili was having a bad high. He put the plate back on the arm of the couch, and he grabbed both of Fili’s hands, helping him stand up. _You need to lay down, come on,_ Kili thought. Fili willingly came with him, clutching to Kili like a lifeline. As they walked along, slowly but surely, there were two little crunches coming from the ground. Fili stilled and looked at the bottom of his feet with great struggle. The one that had a sock on it had an additional two flattened dots, and one fell to the ground with a tiny _tp_.

“No… no… no no no.” Fili moaned, sliding down to the ground and picking up the little smushed specks with care. As he held them in his cupped hands, he shifted to his knees, then to laying on his side. He held the pancaked ladybugs to his chest and stared despondently elsewhere. Kili crouched down in front of him and cupped the back of Fili’s head, stroking his face with his thumb. “Knew it. It’s a sign. I killed them. My fault, all. Mine.”

Kili shook his head in concern, trying to get Fili back on his feet.

“No no no you don’t get it, I _killed_ them. This proves it. Killed Thror. Killed Frerin. Killed ladies. I am Death.”

Uneasy, Kili plopped onto his butt and began rubbing Fili’s shoulder.

“Killed Thror. I saw his boots. His boots were there and I just left him there. Could have-- and Uncle. Kili I _let go_ ,” Fili reached out to Kili’s thigh and scratched weakly at the denim, “I-- dropped the hose,” he finished in a whisper. Kili was frowning. He didn’t know who Thror or Frerin were, but he was sure that what Fili was saying wasn’t true. It couldn’t be, his shorter companion could never hurt anyone. Well, other than the two ladybugs he just stomped on, but it was clear the event had crushed him. Frustrated not for the first time at his inability to speak and calm Fili with words, Kili climbed to his feet before scooping Fili up and carrying the silent and suffering man the rest of the way to his bed.

He laid him down and started pulling his shirt off, Fili beginning to help half way through.

“La-y with me,” Fili drawled, a hand flailing and grasping for Kili’s. Kili couldn’t stop the small grin that appeared, and he relented, flopping down next to Fili on his stomach. They both readjusted a bit, Kili allowing Fili to curl into him. Just this once. Fili seemed to be falling asleep when Kili remembered something. With great struggle, he pulled out the marker from his pocket and nudged Fili a couple of times. The blond grunted and opened an eye.

“Whaaaaaat,” he groaned. Kili smiled, then grabbed Fili’s arm. With the marker, he began doodling something, and Fili giggled at the sensations. It was a crude drawing of Spot, and a question mark next to him. “Ohhhh he’s at the stationnnnn. They sent me home but kept him there ‘til t’m’rrow…” Fili told him, and Kili nodded in understanding. He didn’t let Fili alone after that though. Pulling the marker back up, he began drawing several ladybugs all over Fili’s arm and the portions of his side that he could see.

Fili hid his face in a hand and was snickering loudly at the sensations.

“Noooo! Th’buggers… Kili I read that they like other buggers-- to eat. So I gotthem for you! For your garden. But they escaped… … so many… everywhere… three hundred of them… aaah I couldn’t stop them they’re invincible little bitties,”

Kili had to hold his sides from how hard he laughed after that. ‘A-OK’ he wrote on Fili’s chest. Fili grabbed the spot, his left pec, and nodded.

“Yes good job. A-OK boob. Job. Boob job.” he laughed at his own joke. “Boob joob. Booj booj. _Boooooj_. _Booooooosh_. Kili, you have Mighty Boosh? I want Boosh.” Kili shook his head, his eyes nearly squinted entirely shut from how wide he was smiling. Fili began weakly smacking his forearm, and Kili reached up and grabbed the hand, stilling it. “Ugh. Worthless.”

This didn’t seem to perturb Fili though, and he scooted closer to Kili, hiding his face in his neck. An odd overwhelming sense of affection flooded Kili’s chest. Rearing back a little, he placed a gentle kiss on Fili’s temple, causing Fili to hum and smile. _Mine._ Kili thought automatically, surprising himself. Fili’s eyes cracked open as he began fiddling with the permanent marker, entranced with the plastic clip. After a moment, he brought it up to his nose and laughed. “Aah… this smells so weird good,” he observed. Before he could bring it back up to his nose, Kili intervened, grabbing it out of his hand gently and tossing it over his own shoulder. He listened to it hit the floor, then realized that he had another question to ask Fili.

Kili dragged a hand down his face, irritated at his stupidity. He flopped onto his back, then to his stomach, reaching blindly over the side of the bed until he found the marker. Remaining on his stomach he put the marker in his right hand, and shoved Fili on his back, resulting a grunt from the other man. Kili wrote his message on Fili’s chest, tapping him on the bridge of his nose to get his attention.

‘Your coworkers just sent you home to be here by yourself? What if I hadn’t have shown up? :(‘

Fili moaned. “Kili it’s upside down… I can’t read that… ugh give me a secon-d…”

Kili watched his eyes make minute movements as they read the note. “Oh, um… no? No. Fiak brang me ho-me. Bo’ tow’ him to, said I just had ta wait for you to show up. And you did! Ha ha! I love you! Kili is always there, hmmmm...”

Kili’s body temperature plummeted, and he tuned out of Fili’s continued rambling. Love? Kili was having trouble even looking at Fili now. Love? Kili was pulled from his horror when he felt a strange sensation on his bicep. Fili had managed to grab the marker, and was drawing some, according to Fili, ‘really bitching barbed wire and tribals’ on his upper arm. The lines were all very shaky, but Fili was quite entranced in his work, but struggling to keep his eyes open. It was made even more awkward because Fili had to reach over his own body to draw with his left hand. Love? When the tickling sensations stopped stopped, Kili looked over, and Fili was staring zoned out at the appendage. Without hesitation, Kili brought up his hand and closed Fili’s eyes on his own and turned his head the other direction, facing away from Kili.

Fili groped for Kili’s hand weakly, but otherwise fell asleep almost immediately. Kili continued laying there stiff as a board. Love?

  
  
  


Fili stood under the hot water of his shower, holding a foamy shower puff to his chest. He wasn’t doing much of anything other than breathing and staring at the wall. It was one of those days. He had woken up not in the greatest of spirits, and had a slight feeling of dread stuck in his chest. His shoulders were tense and felt as though there were a lead weight holding them down. When the dread passed, all he felt was a cold, empty, numb sensation. After his shower, he sat on the couch in a basic outfit, his work pants laying next to him and his boots on the ground near the end of the sofa. Spot wasn’t with him, and hadn’t been for a bit over a week. The last time Fili had even been home was when he was sent back after the fiasco with the weed dispensary. Bofur had assured him then that Kili would definitely come to take care of him since he seemed to have some sort of _Fili Radar_ , despite Fili’s objections. Bofur was right in the end. Kili did show up and had taken care of Fili, even going so far as to tuck him into bed and lay with him. But, as usual, Fili fucked up. ‘I love you’? Really? Predictably, Kili was long gone when Fili woke, his side of the bed at a near sub-zero temperature.

A glance at the kitchen had Fili thinking that he should make himself breakfast. He wasn’t hungry though. He knew better than to skip the meal, and forced himself up to his feet and into the other room. After standing stationary in the middle of the floor for two and a half minutes, Fili’s thoughts wandered back to the task at hand and he off-handedly decided on scrambled eggs. He cooked them half-heartedly and ate them with even less enthusiasm, spending most of the time pecking and pushing around the ketchup soaked eggs. Even with the ketchup, he could taste how dry and bland they were. The only part of his meal he ended up finishing was his morning beer, the crushed can quickly tossed into the recycle bin and replaced with another unopened one. He scraped off the messy leftovers into the trash and dumped the dishes into the sink, barely bothering to rinse them off. Finishing getting ready for the day ahead of him, Fili slipped out the front door and headed off towards his car.

Most days, Fili would walk to work. He enjoyed the exercise, and loved saying hello to those he ran into. Today he just wasn’t feeling it. His chest felt too empty… hollow, devoid of any life. On the days he did drive to work, be it the weather or Spot was being too much of a nuisance, he’d put on the radio and sing along. Spot would even join in sometimes, making for a lively car ride. Fili fiddled with the radio, but couldn’t settle on anything for too long. One song he did truly enjoy happened to be on, but he couldn’t sing to it. It felt like too much work; his heart wasn’t up to the task, and just opening his mouth to speak a few of the lyrics felt like a burden. He left the radio on static, only paying a mild amount of attention to the road as his vision fuzzed out ever so slightly. He kept having to re-focus his vision, knowing how stupid it was to zone out while driving, and was thankful when he reached the station.

When he turned off the ignition, he heard the familiar sound of Spot barking and whining as he tried to get to his owner. Just the thought of seeing his best bud had Fili cracking a tiny smile. Less than a minute later and Spot had sprinted out of the firehouse and straight to the driver’s side door, barking frantically and jumping around. Fili’s smile widened a bit and he rested the side of his forehead against the window as a lazy way of greeting. With a sigh, Fili finally opened the car door, only to be assaulted by a crazed Spot.

“Alright, alright! Get down, boy. Yes, I’m here, and yes, I missed you you great galoot. Get down so I can clock in,” he shoved Spot away and stood, stretching his arms and back. Shutting and locking the car, he and Spot went inside.

“Well, well, look what the cat dragged in. Well, I should say dog, actually,” Fili heard someone say. Samwell, one of his fellow workers, came around the corner and smacked Fili on the shoulder. “Enjoy your little vacation?” he asked jokingly.

Fili smirked and rolled his eyes. “Yeah, yeah. Wasn’t all that pleasant, I’ll have you know. I am glad to be back though. I don’t suppose anything exciting happened while I was gone?”

“Not particularly. But we’ve been told to stay on our toes the next couple of days. Bofur thinks that our… miraculous hero of the month is bound to make another appearance some time soon. It _has_ been a little bit since the last one, so you never know,” Samwell grimaced. Fili nodded, mirroring the expression. For the past month and a half, there had been several random fires breaking out all around town-- and at every one was the same man who had through some astounding feats, had managed to put out every single one all by himself. He even saved the little old men and ladies that happened to live within them. Those working at the station with Fili knew something was up though, this guy was definitely an arsonist.

“Aye. But in the meantime, we have something to settle, you and I,” Fili raised and eyebrow and gestured to a small table in the corner of the room. Samwell laughed.

“You’re right! I have no clue why you’re so eager to get your ass kicked _again_ though! You know you can’t beat me in a game of cards!”

“Well you see, Sam, I’ve been practicing. So now it’s time for a swift vengeance!”

  
  
  


Bofur was right, again. If this were to be a reoccurring thing, Fili would be worried. As it was, though, they had a job to do. As Bofur had mentioned, it had been a little while since the last sighting of their town’s new ‘hero’, so it came as no surprise when they were called out to a tiny house on the outskirts of the city that was home to a woman as small and frail as her home. As they arrived, it went without saying that Fili would be immediately dispatched into the home to save her, should things come to that. Though they all suspected their arsonist was behind the fire, they still had to be prepared in case they were wrong. And by all appearances, that seemed to be the exact situation. The fire was still raging and there was no sign of their suspect.

Without precedent, Fili geared himself up and headed in. It took several long moments of searching, but he was finally relieved to hear the weak cries for help coming from one of the rooms. He hurried over to it and found their victim curled up in the corner by her bed.

“Don’t worry ma’am, we’re here to help,” he told her. She thanked him profusely as he carefully lifted her up like a blushing bride, and bustled back out to bring her to safety. As Fili brought her to the back of the fire truck to hand her over to the EMTs, she began to fret.

“You have to get Battlepaw! You can’t let him get killed, _please!_ ” she sobbed. Fili assured her that once the fire was more under control, he’d go back in and see what he could do. He ended up having to wait about ten minutes while Fiak, Elladan and Elrohir sprayed down the house before being allowed to go back in.

“Here, kitty kitty kitty kitty,” he called out, “he-re kitty kitty kitty!”

He turned towards the hallway and was both startled and relieved to see a dark ball of fur fly by him and out the door. “Good kitty,” he mumbled. Just as Fili turned back towards the entrance, something caught his eye. “What the hell-- you! What are you doing here!?” he spat.

Standing in the entrance to the kitchen was their suspect: an average looking Man with plain features. Fili knew if he were to escape, he'd be able to blend in with a crowd and disappear. 

“What are _you_ doing here! You shouldn’t be here! This is my fire! I’m the one doing the saving here!” the man shouted.

“What? That’s-- hey!” Fili grunted as the man charged right into him, bowling him to the ground. He began hitting Fili clumsily, and it became clear to Fili that he was trying to get at his helmet and oxygen tank. After a few seconds of wrestling, Fili managed to get out on top, holding the man’s arms above him. Through some maneuvering, he managed to get them both on their feet. The movements were awkward enough to leave Fili wide open. In an instant, his captive managed to pull his hands free, and before Fili could react, landed a solid punch to his cheek. Fili responded by grabbing the collar of the man's shirt, trying to force him away. It worked, but not before he got another strong swing in to Fili's mouth. Fili was forced to spit out a bit of blood as he was kicked behind the knee, causing him to drop to the ground with an expletive.

Instead of fleeing, the man yanked Fili’s helmet off and began beating him with it! Fili had no choice but to curl up and throw his arms over his head to deflect the blows to his skull, the blows combined with the smoke and heat leaving him dizzy. After a long moment of this, Fili took a chance. He began throwing wild punches at the man’s closest shin in hopes they would distract him. It did, slightly. The attacks with the helmet stopped, but instead the man’s other leg reared back and snapped forward, booting Fili in the back of his skull brutishly. Fili was out like a light, and the man made his escape.

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ugh don't look at me, this is so shitty. I literally wrote the last half in the hour before i has to leave for work. I bet ypu can tell EXACTLY when that was lmao. PS this fic's official song is Plain Sailing Weather by Frank Turner. Comments to cheer me up please? ouo

**Author's Note:**

> Comments/Kudos lift my spirits and give me life u3u  
> Find us both on tumblr at!:  
> -Lindir-Official/Werewulftherewulf  
> -Nadadel


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